Hirt takes Tour of Oman lead with strong finish atop Green Mountain

An attack in the final kilometre of Stage 5 helped Jan Hirt take both victory atop Green Mountain and the red jersey at the Tour of Oman.

Intermarche–Wanty–Gobert Materiaux rider Jan Hirt celebrates after winning the fifth stage of the Tour of Oman Source: Getty Images

Hirt’s solo surge to victory came 39 seconds ahead of Arkea-Samsic’s Kevin Vauquelin, with Elie Gesbert a further 49 seconds behind in third.

The Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert Materiaux rider took command of the overall general ranking after Fausto Masnada (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team) struggled on the 5.7-kilometre, 10.5 per cent climb.

Masnada went wide on the road to ease the pain during the steep final kilometre and now trails Hirt by exactly one minute with one stage remaining.

Stage five saw riders traverse 150.5 kilometres of largely flat roads, culminating in a fast ride to the foot of Green Mountain.

The increasing gradient served to shake out the group, with Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert soon taking control to leave just 10 riders up front with three kilometres to go.

Hirt timed his attack with two kilometres remaining; exerting as much energy as possible in a bid to exploit the gap left by Masnada’s earlier struggles.

Now, fresh from the biggest victory of his career, the 31-year-old has the chance to retain the red race leader’s jersey ahead of a final 132.5-kilometre stage from Al Mouj Muscat to the Mutrah Corniche.