(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Qatar's Abdullah Afif won stage two of the Qatar leg at the 14th GCC Cycling Championship yesterday. It was the seventh stage of the GCC event which was started and finished in Madinat Al Shamal after the riders had completed a distance of 103.3kms.
Afif clocked a time of one hour, 49 minutes and 35 seconds and finished ahead of overnight leader Yusuff al-Mansoori of the UAE. Al-Mansoori came home in a time of 1 hour, 49 minutes and 38 seconds. Qatar's Musa Khalfan finished third with a timing of 1 hour, 49 minutes and 39 seconds.
Yesterday's stage was contested by a group of 32 riders. At the end of stage seven, Mohamed al-Mansoori has the leader's yellow jersey whereas Ahmed al-Mansouri has green jersey. Veteran UAE rider Yusuf Mirza has red jersey. Mohammed Abdul Hakim retained the white jersey dedicated to best young (under-23) rider.
Qatar Cycling Federation (QCF), which is hosting the event and the Qatar leg will conclude today. Afif said he was pleased with his performance. "I am happy that I crossed the finish line ahead of other big names," Afif said.
"Overall it was a stiff test for me and my team. But we were focused. Our concentration helped us to do well," he added. "It was a windy day, no doubt. I thank my teammates for their help and guidance," he said.
Qatar coach Tariq Ismail said, he was thrilled with the riding of his young cyclists. "It was a good day for us. A tough but a good day," Ismail said. "I am glad to see our riders on the podium. I hope our rider Abdul Hakim keeps his white jersey. I think we are building a good team that does well in such competitions," Ismail said.
Jamal al-Kuwari, Executive Director of QCF, said: "It was another day of fabulous riding. We are overall satisfied with the performances of our riders. The weather is great for racing though sometimes it becomes windy."
Today's final stage will be held in Dukhan with the riders completing a distance of 98kms.
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