The 2018 Okolo Slovenska () was a five-stage men's professional
road cycling race
Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most commo ...
. The race is the 62nd edition of the
Okolo Slovenska
Okolo Slovenska ( en, Tour of Slovakia; french: Tour de Slovaquie) is an annual road cycling stage race in Slovakia. Founded in 1954, since 2017 it has been rated as a 2.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour. It is a stage race that usually includes f ...
. It was rated as a
2.1
The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the world's governing body in the sport of bicycle racing, classifies races according to a rating scale.
The rating is represented by a code made of two or three parts and indicates both the type or style ...
event as part of the
2018 UCI Europe Tour
The 2018 UCI Europe Tour was the fourteenth season of the UCI Europe Tour. The 2018 season began on 25 January 2018 with the Vuelta a Mallorca, Trofeo Porreres, Felanitx, Ses Salines, Campos and ended on 16 October 2018 with the Nationale Sluiting ...
. The race started in
Poprad
Poprad (; hu, Poprád; german: Deutschendorf) is a city in northern Slovakia at the foot of the High Tatra Mountains, famous for its picturesque historic centre and as a holiday resort. It is the biggest town of the Spiš region and the ten ...
on 12 September and finish on 16 September in
Galanta
Galanta ( hu, Galánta, german: Gallandau) is a town (about 15,000 inhabitants) in the Trnava Region of Slovakia. It is situated 50 km due east of the Slovak capital Bratislava.
Etymology
The name is derived from a Slavic name ''Golęta'' ( ...
.
The Frenchmen rider
Julian Alaphilippe
Julian Alaphilippe (born 11 June 1992) is a French professional road cyclist, former cyclo-cross racer and two-fold UCI World Road Champion, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He is the brother of racing cyclist Bryan Alaphilippe.
Career E ...
of won the general classification, by taking first place at the summit finish in
Štrbské Pleso
Štrbské pleso (, german: Tschirmer See, pl, Szczyrbskie jezioro, hu, Csorbató or ) is a picturesque mountain lake of glacial origin and a top tourist destination in the High Tatras, Slovakia. It is the second-largest glacial lake on the Sl ...
. He won the race by sixteen seconds overall, from 's
Jan Tratnik
Jan Tratnik (born 23 February 1990 in Ljubljana) is a Slovenian cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He was named in the startlist for the 2017 Giro d'Italia. In July 2019, he was named in the startlist for the 2019 Tour de France.
M ...
,
Benedetti completed the podium.
Teams
The 21 teams invited to the race were:
Route
Stages
Prologue
;12 September 2018
Poprad
Poprad (; hu, Poprád; german: Deutschendorf) is a city in northern Slovakia at the foot of the High Tatra Mountains, famous for its picturesque historic centre and as a holiday resort. It is the biggest town of the Spiš region and the ten ...
, , (
Individual time trial
An individual time trial (ITT) is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock (in French: ''contre la montre'' – literally "against the watch", in Italian: ''tappa a cronometro'' "stopwatch stage"). There are also track-b ...
)
Stage 1
;13 September 2018
Poprad
Poprad (; hu, Poprád; german: Deutschendorf) is a city in northern Slovakia at the foot of the High Tatra Mountains, famous for its picturesque historic centre and as a holiday resort. It is the biggest town of the Spiš region and the ten ...
to
Štrbské Pleso
Štrbské pleso (, german: Tschirmer See, pl, Szczyrbskie jezioro, hu, Csorbató or ) is a picturesque mountain lake of glacial origin and a top tourist destination in the High Tatras, Slovakia. It is the second-largest glacial lake on the Sl ...
,
Stage 2
;14 September 2018
Ružomberok
Ružomberok (; german: Rosenberg; hu, Rózsahegy; pl, Rużomberk) is a town in northern Slovakia, in the historical Liptov region. It has a population of around 27,000 inhabitants (45,000 with nearby villages).
Etymology
The name of the initia ...
to
Dubnica nad Váhom
Dubnica nad Váhom (; Slovak before 1927: ''Dubnica'', german: Dubnitz an der Waag, hu, Máriatölgyes, before 1899 ''Dubnic(z)'') is a town in the Ilava District, Trenčín Region in Slovakia.
Geography
It is located on the Váh river, in the ...
,
Stage 3
;15 September 2018
Dubnica nad Váhom
Dubnica nad Váhom (; Slovak before 1927: ''Dubnica'', german: Dubnitz an der Waag, hu, Máriatölgyes, before 1899 ''Dubnic(z)'') is a town in the Ilava District, Trenčín Region in Slovakia.
Geography
It is located on the Váh river, in the ...
to
Nitra
Nitra (; also known by other alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra. It is located 95 km east of Bratislava. With a population of about 78,353, it is the fifth la ...
,
Stage 4
;16 September 2018
Nitra
Nitra (; also known by other alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra. It is located 95 km east of Bratislava. With a population of about 78,353, it is the fifth la ...
to
Galanta
Galanta ( hu, Galánta, german: Gallandau) is a town (about 15,000 inhabitants) in the Trnava Region of Slovakia. It is situated 50 km due east of the Slovak capital Bratislava.
Etymology
The name is derived from a Slavic name ''Golęta'' ( ...
,
Classification leadership
In the 2018 Tour of Slovakia, five jerseys were awarded. The
general classification
The general classification (or the GC) in road bicycle racing is the category that tracks overall times for riders in multi-stage races. Each stage will have a stage winner, but the overall winner in the GC is the rider who has the fastest cumulati ...
was calculated by adding each cyclist's finishing times on each stage. The leader of the general classification received a yellow jersey sponsored by national
lottery
A lottery is a form of gambling that involves the drawing of numbers at random for a prize. Some governments outlaw lotteries, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of ...
TIPOS. This classification was considered the most important of the 2018 Tour of Slovakia, and the winner of the classification was considered the winner of the race.
The second classification was the
points classification
The points classification is a secondary award category in road bicycle racing. Points are given for high finishes and, in some cases, for winning sprints at certain places along the route, most often called ''intermediate sprints''. The points cl ...
. Riders were awarded points for finishing in the top ten in a stage. Points were also won in intermediate sprints. The leader of the points classification was awarded a white jersey with blue polka-dots sponsored by
Škoda
Škoda means ''pity'' in the Czech and Slovak languages. It may also refer to:
Czech brands and enterprises
* Škoda Auto, automobile and previously bicycle manufacturer in Mladá Boleslav
** Škoda Motorsport, the division of Škoda Auto respons ...
.
There was also a
mountains classification
The King of the Mountains (KoM) is an award given to the best climbing specialist in a men's cycling road race; in women's cycle racing
A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a femal ...
for which points were awarded for reaching the top of a climb before other riders. The climbs were categorized, in order of increasing difficulty, as second and first-category. The leadership of the mountains classification was marked by a white jersey with red polka-dots sponsored by
private equity company janom.
The fourth jersey represented the
under-23 classification, marked by a white jersey sponsored by
Minister of Education, Science, Research and Sport. Only riders born after 1 January 1996 were eligible; the under-23 best placed rider in the general classification was the leader of the under 23 classification. Additionally there was also a classification for Slovakian riders, marked by a white, blue and red jersey. Only Slovakian riders were eligible and they were awarded according to their placement in the general classification of the race.
There was also a classification for Combativity given after each stage to the rider considered, by the organisers, the most combative rider. The winner wore a red bib for the next stage. The final classification was the
team classification The team classification is one of the different rankings for which competitors can compete in a multiple stage cycling race. It differs from the other usual rankings (general classification, points, king of the mountain and best young rider competi ...
, in which the times of the best three cyclists in a team on each stage were added together; the leading team at the end of the race was the team with the lowest cumulative time.
* In stage three,
Jan Tratnik
Jan Tratnik (born 23 February 1990 in Ljubljana) is a Slovenian cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He was named in the startlist for the 2017 Giro d'Italia. In July 2019, he was named in the startlist for the 2019 Tour de France.
M ...
, who was second in the points classification, wore the white with blue polka-dots jersey, because first placed
Julian Alaphilippe
Julian Alaphilippe (born 11 June 1992) is a French professional road cyclist, former cyclo-cross racer and two-fold UCI World Road Champion, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He is the brother of racing cyclist Bryan Alaphilippe.
Career E ...
wore the yellow jersey as leader of the general classification.
Final standings
General classification
Points classification
Mountains classification
Under-23 rider classification
Team classification
Notes and references
References
Notes
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tour of Slovakia, 2018
2018 UCI Europe Tour
2018 in Slovak sport
Okolo Slovenska