SUBSCRIBE NOW!<\/a>On this afternoon, there was nothing but people, packed shoulder to shoulder for a glimpse of something unfamiliar yet magnetic. For many, \u201cPune Grand Tour\u201d may not have meant UCI points, but it was a break from their routine life, with a sporting spectacle unfolding in their city. ![\"Pune](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/pune-grand-tour-2026.jpg\" "\\"Villagers")
<\/p>\nVillagers gather in large numbers to show their support to Indian rider Dinesh Kumar of National Team, during the Pune Grand Tour 2026<\/p>\n
\u201cNever seen such a big crowd in my entire life,\u201d said Cameron Nicholas Scott, still wide-eyed, after winning Stage 3 of the Pune Grand Tour.As the peloton surged into Baramati and approached the finish at Vidya Pratishthan, Pencil Chowk, the frequent roars from the crowd were heard from a few kilometres away.Scott of Li Ning Star, China, clocked 03:04:13 to edge out Georgios Bouglas of Burgos Burpellet BH, Spain. Timothy Dupont of Tarteletto\u2013Isorex, Belgium, completed the podium.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been such a good experience. Everyone\u2019s really hospitable. People are always offering a helping hand<\/p>\n
Amalia Langham, manager of Australia\u2019s Nex Velofit<\/p>\n
Despite missing the podium, Mudgway retained the Yellow Jersey as overall leader and also claimed the Green Jersey for best sprinter.Nevertheless, away from the numbers and jerseys, what stood out was the reaction of the teams experiencing India for the first time.When asked about his experience in India, a French team member, struggling for words, simply smiled and said, \u201cGood, good.\u201d ![\"Pune](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1769144291_775_pune-grand-tour-2026.jpg\" "\\"Camroon")
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Camroon Scott of Li Ning Star, China celebrates Stage 3 win of the Pune Grand Tour 2026<\/p>\n
Amalia Langham, manager of Australia\u2019s Nex Velofit, was more expressive, though. \u201cIt\u2019s been such a good experience. Everyone\u2019s really hospitable. People are always offering a helping hand,\u201d she told TimesofIndia.com on the sidelines of the Pune Grand Tour.From a competitive standpoint, she felt the organisers had exceeded expectations.\u201cThe roads are beautiful. The boys are loving the racing. It\u2019s a big field; it has a bit of everything. We really appreciate the invite and the opportunity to race here. We\u2019ve loved every minute and hope to come back next year,\u201d she added.Asked about areas of improvement, Langham paused and kept her smile on. \u201cHonestly, it\u2019s really hard to find negatives. Even traffic management has been a pleasant surprise. The roads are clear. Anything you need, the organisers are ready to help.\u201d<\/p>\n
Today was quite a big transfer and this evening is going to be a really, really big transfer home. That\u2019s six hours in the day in a car, and that\u2019s not ideal for racing.<\/p>\n
Mike Cross<\/p>\n
The English team Schils\u2013Doltcini, competing with a depleted lineup after crashes and illness, was equally appreciative of the hosting standards.\u201cThe hosts have been great. We get looked after nicely,\u201d Sports director Mike Cross said this website. \u201cThe racing is hard, but it\u2019s good.”However, Cross pointed out that the logistical demands of a multi-stage race in a new cycling market posed challenges, particularly the long transfers between stages.\u201cToday was quite a big transfer and this evening is going to be a really, really big transfer home,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s six hours in the day in a car, and that\u2019s not ideal for racing.\u201d ![\"Pune](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1769144292_209_pune-grand-tour-2026.jpg\" "\\"Crowds")
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Crowds wave to the riders passing through villages during Pune Grand Tour 2026<\/p>\n
While acknowledging the strain on riders, Cross framed it as part of the learning curve for a first edition. \u201cThat\u2019s something that can be worked on,\u201d he added. \u201cThey\u2019ve learned long and hard already, and with experience, these things get better. Overall, it\u2019s been good. For a first edition, they\u2019ve done a really solid job.\u201dFrom Asia, the Philippines\u2019 Victoria Sports Pro Cycling Team found themselves energised by the atmosphere.Assistant sports director Ryan said, \u201cA lot of people are waiting on the roads. They don\u2019t care about the heat or humidity. They just want to witness this phenomenal event.\u201d<\/p>\n
Poll<\/p>\n
What aspect of the Pune Grand Tour impressed you the most?<\/p>\n
He described the organisation as \u201cphenomenal\u201d and felt the level of competition, for an inaugural UCI 2.2 race in India, was \u201creally tough\u201d.Back in Saswad and Baramati, long after the riders had vanished down the road, many spectators lingered, some discussing the race, others simply soaking in the moment.For them, the Pune Grand Tour may have passed in a flash. But the memory of finding a spot at the front row of the crowd is something that is destined to linger far longer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Villages along the route of Pune Grand Tour gather to support riders during India’s first UCI 2.2 road…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":385499,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,145739,145741,145743,145745,145744,145738,101,145742,145740,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-385498","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-cycling-event-in-india","tag-cycling-experience-in-india","tag-hospitality-at-pune-grand-tour","tag-international-cycling-teams-in-india","tag-li-ning-star","tag-pune-grand-tour","tag-sports","tag-sports-tourism-in-india","tag-uci-2-2-race","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385498","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=385498"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385498\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/385499"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=385498"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=385498"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=385498"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Pune](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/pune-grand-tour.jpg\" "\\"Villages")
Villages along the route of Pune Grand Tour gather to support riders during India’s first UCI 2.2 road race. TimesofIndia.com in Pune: It was 12:38 pm on Thursday afternoon here. Clutching the metal barrier, a mother-son duo stood rooted among a swelling queue of spectators who had just witnessed a spectacular flag-off.As people around them began to disperse, the mother asked a passerby in Marathi, \u201cWon\u2019t they come again?\u201d The reply was a simple shake of the head: \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n