Bardiani-CSF 7 Saber continued its strong run at the Tour of Magnificent Qinghai, with Alex Tolio taking fifth place in the third stage, a 167.7-kilometre route from Menyuan to Huzhu.

The stage was decided on the two climbs in the second half of the race, where the peloton was gradually reduced. Tolio managed to bridge across to the leading group with just over 20 kilometres remaining and stayed with the eleven-rider front group that contested the stage victory. The rider from Treviso crossed the line in fifth place, behind Henok Mulueberhan, Jonathan Caicedo, Antonio Fagúndez and Jan Castellon, moving up to seventh place in the general classification.

Behind the leaders, young Colombian Martin Herreño also delivered a strong performance, finishing twelfth after winning the sprint of the first chasing group.

For Bardiani-CSF 7 Saber, it was the team’s third consecutive top-five result, following the double top-10 finish in the opening stage and Marco Manenti’s second place in stage two.

Stage 3 Results

1. Henok Mulueberhan (XDS Astana Team) – 3:33:08
2. Jonathan Caicedo (Wheeltop Rotor Chengdu Team) – s.t.
3. Antonio Fagúndez (Burgos Burpellet BH) – s.t.
4. Jan Castellon (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) – s.t.
5. Alex Tolio (Bardiani-CSF 7 Saber) – s.t.
6. Samuel Fernández (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) – s.t.
7. Jon Agirre (Euskaltel-Euskadi) – s.t.
8. Jonas Rapp (FNIX-SCOM-Hengxiang Cycling Team) – s.t.
9. Emanuel Buchmann (Cofidis) – s.t.
10. Cristian Rodríguez (XDS Astana Team) – s.t.

General Classification

1. Jonathan Caicedo (Wheeltop Rotor Chengdu Team) – 11:18:31
2. Henok Mulueberhan (XDS Astana Team) – +0:01
3. Antonio Fagúndez (Burgos Burpellet BH) – +0:08
4. Jon Agirre (Euskaltel-Euskadi) – +0:09
5. Samuel Fernández (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) – +0:09
6. Cristian Rodríguez (XDS Astana Team) – +0:10
7. Alex Tolio (Bardiani-CSF 7 Saber) – +0:12
8. Jan Castellon (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) – +0:12
9. Jonas Rapp (FNIX-SCOM-Hengxiang Cycling Team) – +0:12
10. Emanuel Buchmann (Cofidis) – +0:12