Canadian rider James Piccoli finishes third in third stage of Tour of Rwanda

GICUMBI, Rwanda — Canadian rider James Piccoli finished third Tuesday in the third stage of the Tour of Rwanda.

France’s Alain Boileau, a member of the B&B Hotels p/b KTM team, won a sprint to the finish in the 171.6-kilometre stage from Nyanza to Gicumbi in four hours 23 minutes 57 seconds.

Colombian Julian Quintero of the Terengganu Cycling Team was second ahead of Piccoli, a 29-year-old from Montreal who rides for Israel Start-Up Nation. Both had the same time as the leader.

Colombian Brayan Sanchez, from Team Medellin, leads the general classification after three stages. Piccoli is fifth.

The gruelling third stage featured 4,000 metres of climbing elevation, often in wet conditions.

“The team’s confidence has grown after today,” said Piccoli, who is his team’s featured rider. “We are looking forward to the next stages.”

The eight-stage race, which runs through Sunday, was originally scheduled for February but was pushed back to May due to the pandemic.

The Tour of Rwanda, in its 13th year, is Africa’s biggest UCI stage race.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 4, 2021

The Canadian Press