Australian cyclist Leigh Howard finished second to Germany's Andre Greipel in the opening stage of the Tour of Oman.
Greipel, who became the first rider to don the leader's red jersey, edged ahead of Orica-GreenEDGE rider Howard and Nicola Ruffoni of Italy in a sprint finish at Nassen Garden.
Howard was delighted with the performance.
"Really happy with 2nd today behind @AndreGreipel & great team effort by @Orica_GreenEDGE boys, first sprint of the season for me," Howard said on his Twitter account.
Greipel, who rides for the Lotto team, began his season with two stage wins in Australia, in the Tour Down Under, and another in last week's Tour of Qatar.
"This proves I've lost none of my edge when it comes to speed, but it also shows the team is very strong, the guys all worked hard and no one but us deserved to win today," he said.
Greipel did have a moment of doubt in the final run-in as as he found himself trailing a rapid breakaway, but the team came to his rescue.
"It was an awkward moment but Lars Bak put in the work to get me back to the front," Greipel added.
For Tour de France winner Chris Froome, the race favourite, things do not really begin in earnest until Thursday with the first of the climbs.
In the meantime, the sprinters have another day in the limelight on Wednesday with a 139 kilometre ride on the flat from Al Bustan to Quriyat.
