Jay Vine: 'We really wanted to win here as a team'

Australian Jay Vine, the winner of the seventh stage of the 58th Presidential Cycling Tour of Türkiye (Tour of Türkiye), said he was happy with the stage victory he achieved with one day left in the tour.

The 159.8-kilometer Selçuk-Manisa-İzmir stage of the Tour of Türkiye, organized by the Turkish Cycling Federation under the auspices of the Presidency and with the support of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, was completed.

Jay Vine, the Australian athlete for the United Arab Emirates representative UAE Team Emirates who finished the stage in first place, made statements to the press.

Stating that he came to Türkiye with high ambitions, the 27-year-old climber said, "I came here with the intention of doing more in the general classification. However, there were some problems in the third stage and yesterday's stage. But as a team, we really wanted to win here. It was very good for the team to get such a stage victory with one day left until the end of the season."

Stating that he will wear the red jersey in the final stage, Vine said, "Even if the red jersey was not the main goal I expected from this tour, it is still an achievement that makes us happy."

Regarding the stage where he led alone for the last 25 kilometers, Vine said, "It was very good for me to win here at the end of a very long season. I had worked and trained well. I had prepared for two grand tours, but I could not finish the Giro d'Italia. It has been a very tough and long season. I am looking forward to Monday to put my feet up and rest. I had noticed the headwind in today's final. I targeted the last turn. I knew it would be easier after turning there. If I went at 60 kilometers per hour until the finish, the peloton would not be able to catch me. Thinking about this, I pushed myself forward. I felt good and I succeeded."