The 187 kilometer long fourth stage of Tour of Oman between Ibri and Nakhal surprisingly developed into an inspiring pursue on the last part of the stage as harsh winds tore the peloton apart. As the leader of the race, Norwegian Edvald Boasson Hagen (Team Sky) was not in the front part of the peloton when it exploded, he was dropped and was not able to get back to the front.

Here, Team Saxo Bank was represented by five riders along with Daniele Bennati (Liquigas) who crossed the finish line in second place which proved to be enough to secure him the overall lead of the race. Leigh Howard (Team Columbia) won his first professional victory by taking today’s stage.

“At first, the stage seemed like another dedication to the sprinters and on the last part of the stage I told the guys to move to the front as I always do to prevent any mishaps or loss of time. About 35 kilometers from the finish line, there was an attack which tore the peloton into three groups and five Team Saxo Bank-riders were in the front, including Fabian. Of course, he is now in a strong position to take the leader’s jersey on Friday’s time trial but he is still not feeling in peak shape as his main goals are in April. We’ll still have to wait and see what happens on tomorrow’s stage,” says sports director Bradley McGee after the stage.

Besides Fabian Cancellara, Team Saxo Bank was represented by Matti Breschel, Sebastian Haedo, Stuart O’Grady and Juan José Haedo.

Tomorrow’s fifth stage is 148 kilometers. The stage race ends on Friday with a 18,5 kilometer long time trial.