Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step, France) won stage 1 of 6 of the Tour of Guangxi (China), starting and finishing in Chongzuo, 149.2 km, on 13 October, in the bunch sprint, 137 riders given the same time, in 3h00’23”. Second was Sam Welsford (Netcompany Ineos, Australia), third Max Kanter (XDS Astana Team, Germany).
Paul Magnier is the first leader of the general classification, 4″ ahead of Sam Welsford and Fredrik Dversnes.
The stage
The Tour of Guangxi set off again from Chongzuo, on a circuit that returned to Chongzuo. It was a flat stage, the first of six, and it had the finish everyone expected: a bunch sprint. Paul Magnier’s, though, was the cleanest.
After several failed attempts in the opening kilometres, three riders got away: Patrick Gamper (Jayco AlUla), Fredrik Dversnes (Uno-X Mobility) and Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost). The bunch kept them in sight. Their lead never reached two minutes and the bunch caught them less than ten kilometres from the finish.
The breakaway was not in vain. Dversnes won both bonus seconds at the intermediate sprints and so, in the general classification, he is third alongside Welsford, 4” behind Magnier. Powless and Gamper, after the breakaway, are fifth and sixth.
In the finale Soudal Quick-Step and Decathlon CMA CGM controlled the race, shutting down the last attacks. The final straight rose slightly, but not enough to break up the bunch. Magnier had his team in front of him until the sprint, then found room along the barriers and won, ahead of Welsford and Kanter.
Those who needed to beat him did not manage it. Olav Kooij, one of the favourites, had his sprint compromised and gave it up. Fabio Jakobsen, on his debut in a WorldTour race with Visma, was boxed in and could not sprint: he finished sixteenth. Sports director Gaëtan Pons said the team made itself seen in the finale and that this gives confidence.
Magnier is 22 and has already won 14 races in 2026. That makes six wins in seven Guangxi stages, counting 2025 as well. He already has the points jersey and the young riders’ jersey, and now he has first place in the general classification too.
Among the Italians the best was Matteo Milan (Groupama-FDJ United), sixth in the sprint. Tomorrow the race goes from Chongzuo to Jingxi, 179 kilometres.
The first of the Italians is Matteo Milan, Groupama-Fdj United, 6th on the same time as the winner; in the general classification he is 9th, 10″ down. 149 of the 150 starters finished the stage.
The stage top ten
| # | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul Magnier | Soudal Quick-Step | 3h00’23” |
| 2 | Sam Welsford | Netcompany Ineos | s.t. |
| 3 | Max Kanter | XDS Astana Team | s.t. |
| 4 | Oded Kogut | NSN Cycling Team | s.t. |
| 5 | Arvid De Kleijn | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | s.t. |
| 6 | Matteo Milan | Groupama-Fdj United | s.t. |
| 7 | Erlend Blikra | Uno-X Mobility | s.t. |
| 8 | Luke Lamperti | EF Education-Easypost | s.t. |
| 9 | Lionel Taminiaux | Lotto Intermarché | s.t. |
| 10 | Itamar Einhorn | NSN Cycling Team | s.t. |
The general classification after stage 1
| # | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul Magnier | Soudal Quick-Step | 3h00’13” |
| 2 | Sam Welsford | Netcompany Ineos | +4″ |
| 3 | Fredrik Dversnes | Uno-X Mobility | +4″ |
| 4 | Max Kanter | XDS Astana Team | +6″ |
| 5 | Neilson Powless | EF Education-Easypost | +6″ |
| 6 | Patrick Gamper | Team Jayco Alula | +8″ |
| 7 | Oded Kogut | NSN Cycling Team | +10″ |
| 8 | Arvid De Kleijn | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | +10″ |
| 9 | Matteo Milan | Groupama-Fdj United | +10″ |
| 10 | Erlend Blikra | Uno-X Mobility | +10″ |
The race in numbers
- Average speed
- 49.6 km/h 149.2 km in 3h00’23”, the winner’s time.
- Weather at the finish
- 31 °C 0.2 mm of rain; in Chongzuo, from 14 to 17 local time.
- Wind at the finish
- under 5 km/h Almost calm, gusts up to 13 km/h; over the same hours.
- Selection index
- 0 out of 100 Of 149 finishers: 145 within 30 seconds of the winner, 149 within 2 minutes, all within 10 minutes (him included). It runs from 0, a bunch sprint, to 98, a solo finish.
News written with the help of Mnemosyne.
Sources
- Results and times: UCI, official results.
- Team Visma | Lease a Bike, “No major role for Team Visma | Lease a Bike in fast opening stage Tour of Guangxi”.
- Weather: Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
- Photo: GeorgDerReisende, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
