Top sprinters to battle it out at Tour of Qatar

Some of the biggest names in men’s cycling have descended on Doha and the coming six days would see some fierce battles in testing windy conditions during the 103,375 euro Tour of Qatar starting here today.Once again, it will be three times champion in Qatar –Tom Boonen of Omega Pharma–Quick Step who will start as one of the firm favourites. The Belgian ace sprinter has huge experience of racing in the desert race that has always favoured the sprinters in the past. Last year too, Boonen started the race on a high, winning the first stage and increased his stage win record here to 18. However, the Belgian ace faded away after the third stage and finished 14th overall at the end of the final stage.The 31-year-old will be keen to get his record back on track but will certainly face stiff challenge from defending champion Mark Renshaw, now with Rabobank Cycling Team. Renshaw became the first Australian to win a title here in Doha last year and will be looking for a repeat.Britain’s ace sprinter Mark Cavendish is also another sprinter to watch out for. However, the 26-year-old world road race champion, who is looking for a dream debut with his new side Team Sky, suffered a setback on the eve of the race. It is learnt that Cavendish was unwell and skipped practice yesterday.The team management is keeping a close watch on Cavendish’s progress and will decide on his participation hours before the race. “Obviously, it’s disappointing that Mark has fallen ill the day before his Team Sky debut. He felt fine when he boarded the plane last night but wasn’t 100% when he got off,” said Team Sky coach Rod Ellingworth.“He’s really frustrated that he’s come down with this because he’s in great shape condition-wise and was looking to hit the ground running here in Qatar. We’re still confident he will start the race but we’ll continue to monitor his health for the rest of today and make a decision on whether he will start the race at 10am local time,” he added.Other riders to watch out for are Philippe Gilbert, Fabian Cancellara, Filippo Pozzato, Thor Hushovd, Robbie McEwen, Denis Galimzyanov and Peter Sagan.In all, 128 cyclists from 16 teams will take part in the 142.5 km stage one from Barzan Towers at 12.40pm and will finish around 3.45pm at the Doha Golf Club. The first intermediate sprint will be held at UMM Suwayia Farm after 28.5 kms while the second after 82 kms at UMM Thenaitain Farm.