Quanzhou, October 17, 2016 -- On October 16, the three-day 2016 Maritime Silk Road Quanzhou Bay International Road Cycling Race concluded successfully in Quanzhou, Fujian. Niki Terpstra from the Astana Pro Team won the overall championship and donned the prestigious yellow jersey. The "King of the Mountains" was Wang Xin from the HuanYu Sports Look Continental Team, while the "Sprint King" was Mauricio Ortega Ramirez from the MTS Team. The Astana City Continental Team claimed the team championship.
After the starting gun fired, the cyclists of the Quanzhou Bay Cycling Race rode across the starting line
As the world's only top-tier international event themed around Maritime Silk Road culture, the Quanzhou Bay International Road Cycling Race is also the highest-level single-sport event ever held in Quanzhou. It attracted 15 teams and hundreds of professional cyclists, as well as tens of thousands of cycling enthusiasts. The race route, integrating sea-crossing, bay-circling, mountain-looping, and city-looping elements, is among the most unique in cycling competitions worldwide.
On October 16, the three-day 2016 Maritime Silk Road Quanzhou Bay International Road Cycling Race concluded successfully in Quanzhou, Fujian. Niki Terpstra from the Astana Pro Team won the overall championship and donned the prestigious yellow jersey.
The event lasted three days in total, divided into three stages covering a total distance of 337 kilometers. The first stage was a green ecological route, the second a bay-crossing coastal stage, and the third an urban circuit stage.
Particularly noteworthy was the bay-crossing coastal stage on the 15th, where, in addition to the professional cycling teams, Olympic gold medalist Gong Jinjie — China’s first-ever Olympic champion in cycling — 2016 Rio Olympics women’s weightlifting 63kg champion Deng Wei, Chinese women’s foil national team member Liu Yongshi, 2016 Rio Olympics men’s gymnastics team bronze medalist Lin Chaopan, Chinese men’s foil national team member Chen Haiwei, and Peak Sports CEO Xu Zhihua led nearly 10,000 cycling enthusiasts from around the world to experience the excitement of a top-tier race firsthand.
“Through this lead ride, I’ve gained a whole new perspective on Quanzhou, known as the ‘Starting City of the Maritime Silk Road’ and the ‘Capital of East Asian Culture.’ Its long history, scattered pearls of cultural heritage, and natural landscapes will surely make it a paradise for cycling enthusiasts,” said Gong Jinjie.
This edition of the Quanzhou Bay Race was operated by Fujian Peak Sports Industry Operation Co., Ltd. As a company primarily engaged in sports product manufacturing, Peak Sports hopes that organizing this event will mark a crucial step in its transformation from a sports goods company to a sports industry group.