ISTANBUL 

Simon Dehairs of Belgium won the first stage of the 60th Presidential Cycling Tour of Türkiye on Sunday.

The 23-year-old cyclist Alpecin-Deceuninck team came first in the 132-km (82-mile) ride, completing the Antalya-Antalya stage in two hours, 51 minutes, and four seconds.

Dehairs expressed in a press conference after winning the stage that he is thrilled with his first professional win, adding that he made significant progress last year, gaining the trust of the team.

"They believed in me as a sprinter. I'm happy to pay them back with a win. I was third on the same finish line last year. I like this race a lot, the weather is always good, we stay in nice hotels, the organization is good, and I like to race over here in Türkiye," the Belgian cyclist added.

Italian athlete Matteo Malucelli from XDS Astana came second, while Team Flanders-Baloise's Belgian cyclist Jules Hesters completed the race third.

With these results, Dehairs took the lead in the general classification and was qualified to wear the "turquoise jersey."

Willem Smit from the China-Glory-Metech team also took the lead in "The Best Sprinter" and "Leader of Treasures of Türkiye Sprints."

In the second stage, the turquoise jersey will be worn by Dehairs, the green jersey by Malucelli, the red jersey by Hesters, and the white jersey by Smit.

The race will continue with the Kemer-Kalkan stage on Monday.

The event, originally launched as the Marmara Tour in 1963, gained international status in 1965 and later came under the auspices of the Turkish Presidency, becoming one of the region’s most prestigious races.

Starting from Antalya on April 27, cyclists will cover 1,153 kilometers (716 miles) over eight stages, passing through renowned Turkish tourism hotspots such as Kemer, Kalkan, Fethiye, Marmaris, Akyaka, Aydin, Kusadasi, Selcuk, and Cesme, before concluding the race in the Aegean city of Izmir on May 4.