2022 Sibiu Cycling Tour - Stage 3 a|b Preview

The final day of the 2022 Sibiu Cycling Tour will be the next real test for the overall contenders, with not one, but two stages on the schedule today: This morning we are hitting the mountains again, for a 12.5 km individual time trial to Păltiniș. before the fast sprinters will come to the fore in the afternoon, to contest the victory on Sibiu's Piața Mare.

The parcours

Stage 3a is a challenging mountain time trial to Păltiniș. The climb is approached from the east, and has a length of 12.5 km, climbing with a 5.3-percent average and rising up to 10.5 percent on the steepest parts. The first nine kilometres are a the hardest, with a few steep ramps thrown in over the steady five to seven percent climb. The road then flattens out a bit to between two and three percent for three kilometres before the road rises for a short kick to the finish. The same stage was used in the 2020 edition of the race, where Gregor Mühlberger turned things around on the final day, and sealed the overall victory with a dominating win in the time trial.

The final stage 3b in the afternoon has a length of 98 kilometres and starts and finishes on the Piața Mare in the centre of Sibiu. Over a large loop through the western outskirts of Sibiu, a breakaway will have a chance to form quickly, before the peloton heads back east to where the stage started.

The last classified climb of the day starts after Apoldu de Sus, cresting with 26.4 km to go, before turning towards Sibiu for this finish of the race. This last part of the stage is not particularly difficult, with its mostly large, slightly descending roads favouring the sprinters' trains, but the final kilometre may spring a surprise: After a right turn with 550 metres to go, the road surface turns to cobbles on the narrow, twisty roads of Sibiu's old town, and continually climb at three percent to the finish on the Piața Mare, where the winner of the 2022 Sibiu Cycling Tour will be crowned.

Stage 2 podium:

1. Giovanni Aleotti (BORA - hansgrohe)
2. Harm Vanhoucke (Lotto Soudal)
3. Cian Uijtdebroeks (BORA - hansgrohe)

Jersey wearers on stage 3a:

General Classification: Giovanni Aleotti (BORA - hansgrohe)

King of Mountain Classification: Lukas Meiler (Team Vorarlberg)

Points Classification: Filippo Fiorelli (Bardiani CSF Faizanè)

Best Young Rider U23: Cian Uijtdebroeks (BORA - hansgrohe)

5 July Stage 3a: Curmătura Stezii - Păltiniș ITT, 12.5 km

Starting Time: 10:00 / Estimated Finish Time: 12:45
Live Coverage: 09:30 - 13:25 on livestream.com
(Eastern European Summer Time, UTC+3)

5 July Stage 3b: Sibiu - Sibiu, 98.4 km

Starting Time: 18:00 / Estimated Finish Time: 20:30
Live Coverage: 17:00 - 21:45 on livestream.com
(Eastern European Summer Time, UTC+3)

2022 Sibiu Cycling Tour parcours
2 July    Prologue: Muzeul ASTRA, 2.3 km
3 July    Stage 1: Brezoi - Sibiu, 206.9 km
4 July    Stage 2: Sibiu - Bâlea Lac, 179.4 km
5 July    Stage 3a: Curmătura Stezii - Păltiniș ITT, 12.5 km
5 July    Stage 3b: Sibiu - Sibiu, 98.4 km

Sibiu Cycling Tour palmarès
2011