American rider Nikolas Milanovic took the dub on a wet and chilly day at the Tour de l\u2019Abitibi Glencore, outsprinting France\u2019s Alban Picard to win Stage 2 on Tuesday. Canadian Maxim Wojciechowski finished third to round out the podium.<\/p>\n
The peloton faced steady rain and cool temperatures on the 118-km stage between Preissac and Val-d\u2019Or, but the conditions didn\u2019t prevent aggressive racing.<\/p>\n
A breakaway of 10 riders formed just 12 km into the race and opened up a gap of nearly three minutes on the main bunch. With the advantage hovering at 2:50, a chase group emerged, including Wojciechowski, who bridged across with the help of two American riders.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the break went, I thought the race was over,\u201d Wojciechowski said. \u201cBut I saw an opportunity to close the gap and when I looked back, two Americans were coming with me. We worked together and made it to the front.\u201d<\/p>\n
Milanovic took the brown leader\u2019s jersey with the win, while Picard took over both the points classification and best young rider standings. Canada\u2019s Paul Hawrylak kept the climber\u2019s jersey.<\/p>\n
The Tour continues Thursday with a double-stage day: a 9.3-km time trial in downtown Val-d\u2019Or in the morning, followed by a 58-kilometre road stage in Malartic in the afternoon.<\/p>\n
The Tour de l\u2019Abitibi is the only North American stop on the UCI Junior Nations Cup calendar and features some of the top under-19 riders from around the world. Just a few days earlier, the first-ever junior women\u2019s took place.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n