Last year\u2019s Tour de France runner-up, Christopher Froome, won the Tour of Oman on Saturday, holding off Alberto Contador and Cadel Evans to claim his first stage-race victory.<\/p>\n
Froome, a Team Sky rider who grabbed the lead after the fourth stage, crossed the Matrah Corniche in Muscat as part of the peloton to safely protect his 27-second lead over Contador, the two-time Tour de France winner who rides for Team Saxo.<\/p>\n
Evans, who won the Tour de France in 2011, was a further 12 seconds back in third.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn\u2019t just a straight forward finish, it had a little bit of a climb on the final circuit which made it a test right down to the last couple of kilometers,\u201d said Froome.<\/p>\n
Team Saxo sporting director Lars Michaelsen said Froome deserved the win after holding off Contador\u2019s challenge.<\/p>\n
\u201cAn overall second place is not exactly a dream position but that\u2019s often the feeling when you\u2019re so close to the top spot,\u201d said Michaelsen.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, we did what we could to get the win and Alberto fought hard and gave everyone a spectacular race. But Froome demonstrated more than once that he can keep coming back after several fierce moves from Alberto and we respect that.\u201d<\/p>\n