HTC-Highroad’s Mark Renshaw sealed his first victory of the season in stage four of the Tour of Qatar, a win that simultaneously enabled the Australian sprinter to move into the overall lead.

Renshaw’s win, the seventh for HTC-Highroad men’s team in the 2011 season came in a bunch sprint at the end of the 153.5 kilometre stage four from West Bay Lagoon to Al Kharaitiyat. Second was Italian Daniele Bennati, with Belgian Tom Boonen in third.

Placing second on stage three of the Tour of Qatar, Renshaw said it was good today to get his first win since the Tour of Denmark last year under his belt.

“It was pretty tough going in the first half because there was a dangerous breakaway, the wind made it difficult again today, and I had no idea if we were going to catch them,” Renshaw said.

“This win is a huge boost to my morale, ever since I got married [this winter] I’ve been training really hard, so this win is dedicated to my wife who’s had to put up with all of that and who’s been very forgiving!”

“I want to thank the team for having confidence in me. I don’t get the opportunity very often to race for myself, which is normal when you’re racing for the fastest sprinter in the world [Mark Cavendish] so I’m just delighted I could make the most of this opportunity and I’m sure Mark is happy I’ve got this result.”

The Tour of Qatar finishes on Friday with the 126.5 kilometre stage from Sealine Beach Resort to Doha Corniche. HTC-Highroad have already won the women’s event this year with Ellen Van Dijk earlier this month, and an overall victory for Renshaw would be an exceptional double for the team.

“It’s going to be a really nervous day, there’s 16 seconds on offer so we’ll have to play things tactically,” Renshaw added. “There are three strong teams here, so it’s a matter of watching our rivals closely and making sure we don’t make any mistakes.”

Stage 4 Results:
1. Mark Renshaw (AUS/HTC), les 153,5 km en 3 h 12:36
2. Daniele Bennati (ITA) m.t.
3. Tom Boonen (BEL) m.t.
4. Heinrich Haussler (AUS) m.t.
5. Denis Galimzyanov (RUS) m.t.
6. Roger Kluge (GER) m.t.
7. Juan Antonio Flecha (ESP) m.t.
8. Tomas Vaitkus (LTU) m.t.
9. Roger Hammond (GBR) m.t.
10. Greg Van Avermaet (BEL) m.t.
…
67. Mathieu Ladagnous (FRA) à 4:44.
72. Yoann Offredo (FRA) à 4:44.

Overall Results:
1. Mark Renshaw (AUS/HTC), en 12 h 47:00.
2. Heinrich Haussler (AUS) à 6.
3. Daniele Bennati (ITA) à 15.
4. Juan Antonio Flecha (ESP) à 24.
5. Roger Hammond (GBR) à 36.
6. Jérémy Hunt (GBR) à 37.
7. Gabriel Rasch (NOR) à 40.
8. Bernhard Eisel (AUT) à 1:03.
9. Marcus Burghardt (GER) à 1:32.
10. Gert Steegmans (BEL) à 1:33.
…
13. Tom Boonen (BEL) à 3:13.
29. Yoann Offredo (FRA) à 10:24.