The Austrian had a commanding lead of about 40 minutes over the second-placed Danish rider Christian Rosvig representing team Pronghorn Racing while his compatriot Jacob Lykke came third.

Hatim al Booshri from the Royal Army of Oman did the country proud as he finished fourth with a time of 4.29hrs.

Hochenwarter who has participated across the world in events like the Cross Country Eliminator World Championship Mountain Bike and Trials World Championships and MTB Marathon World Championship among others took 3.40hrs at an average speed of 21.7km to top the 80km stage. Rosvig and Lykke from Pronghorn Racing had almost same finish time at 4.19hrs with less than a second separating the two.

Rob Gardner general manager Muscat Diving and Adventure Centre which is managing the race along with the organiser Oman Cycling Association said that the first stage was characterised by stunning natural beauty helping riders to enjoy the race.