Sebastián Molano begins Tour of Norway with fourth place

On stage 1 of the 2025 Tour of Norway, UAE Team Emirates-XRG‘s Sebastián Molano sprinted to fourth place in Solakrossen. It was a tricky opening day for all involved, with wind and rain coming to define much of the afternoon.

On a stage that lent itself to a bunch finish, the conditions sent nerves through the peloton and allowed the breakaway the chance to cause an upset. In turn, the young Storm Ingebrigtsen of Team Coop-Repsol came up trumps for the home crowd, with the 20-year-old Norwegian lasting the test of time to win stage 1 as the final survivor of the break.

As Ingebrigtsen celebrated his first professional victory, UAE Team Emirates-XRG thundered into the finale with Mikkel Bjerg, Jan Christen, Alessandro Covi and of course, Molano. Stretching his sprinting legs for the first time this week, the Colombian rose out of his saddle and powered to fourth place across the line, marking a strong start to proceedings for the Emirati squad.

Earlier in the stage, the focus had been on safety and security for the peloton, who marched their way through a howling wind that threatened to rip the bunch to bits. On a number of occasions throughout the afternoon, the peloton was ripped in two, but without hesitation, Molano and his teammates remained well-positioned thanks to the work of Vegard Stake Laengen and Rui Oliveira.

Despite being unable to catch the stage 1 winner in the finale, Covi, Christen and Bjerg traded through-and-off to ensure Molano would not be caught behind a split. Thanks to their efforts, the team remained at the very head of the peloton as its number shrank in the final two kilometres. As they turn their attention to the climbs to come on stages 2 and 3, UAE Team Emirates-XRG look well set for the challenge ahead.

After the stage, Sports Director Tomas Gil reflected on a wet and wild opening day in Scandinavia.

Gil: Today, we did a good job. We prepared the tactics for a windy day, taking into account the rain. In the end, the rain arrived one hour later than expected and the break went away after 20km. They got a maximum gap of two or three minutes and when we arrived to the 103km marker, we positioned the team in front.

“Here, we started the action with the crosswinds and we made the difference with the other teams. We put the team in front between kilometres 103-115, and the peloton broke apart. This continued through to the final.

“Unfortunately, Ingebrigtsen went away from the breakaway and arrived at the finish with a few seconds. We did a good sprint with Sebas, but there was nothing to do against the winner.

“We are now in a good position with four riders inside the options for GC, and we await tomorrow. The most important stage for the GC will be Saturday, and I am happy to report good legs from Jan [Christen], Mikkel [Bjerg], Alessandro [Covi] and Sebas [Molano]. We think we can do a good job over the next days.”

Tour of Norway 2025 stage 1 results

1. Storm Ingebrigtsen (Team Coop-Repsol) 4:06:57

2. Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease a Bike) +3″

3. Tibor Del Grosso (Alpecin-Deceuninck) s.t

4. Sebastián Molano (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) s.t

10. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +6″

General classification after Tour of Norway stage 1

1. Storm Ingebrigtsen (Team Coop-Repsol) 4:06:43

2. Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease a Bike) +11″

3. Tibor Del Grosso (Alpecin-Deceuninck) +13″

4. Sebastián Molano (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +17″