Ben Oliver takes overall cycling win in Belgium
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- 2 min read
Christchurch-born Ben Oliver has been part of a dominant team performance at the Ethias Tour de Wallonie, sprinting to victory on stage five and delivering Modern Adventure Pro Cycling’s first GC win.
Oliver, 29 powered to overall honours iwinning a dramatic fifth and final stage - picking up his first professional tour victory.
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He was among just five riders to contest a sprint finish of a hilly 176km stage in Aubel after a mass crash on the final bend, about 100m from the finish line, took out multiple riders.
Oliver outpaced Belgian Arnaud De Lie, who finished third overall, while American Riley Sheehan was second on general classification, just two seconds behind the delighted New Zealander.
"It's actually insane. It definitely hasn't sunk in yet," said Oliver after the race.
"You just needed to win the last stage to take it, and the bonus seconds just added to the carnage, so I just went all in for the stage win and somehow pulled it off.
"I was hoping to have a good week here, but the competition was super strong. I just had to take it day-by-day. Today was the hardest one yet. I was just surviving and managed to have a kick to the line.
"It's insane to get my first pro win, and then a GC for a five-day race in Belgium is absolutely incredible."
Oliver praised his team-mates from the Modern Adventure Pro Cycling team, who he said positioned him well throughout the week, including for his victory in stage two.
New Zealand's Laurence Pithie won stage three and placed fourth overall.
The second-tier UCI ProSeries race was also won overall by a Kiwi Corbin Strong last year,
stage five and delivering Modern