Fretin wins Guangxi stage three for his first WorldTour victory

Milan Fretin won stage three of the Tour of Guangxi in Bama on 15 October, delivering the Belgian sprinter's first victory at UCI WorldTour level. The Cofidis rider finished ahead of Frits Biesterbos and Jordi Meeus in a closely contested bunch sprint. Fabio Jakobsen placed fourth, completing the leading quartet identified in both Cofidis' account and the independent race report.

The finish rewarded Fretin's approach along the right side of the broad road into Bama. His team described the stage as the longest of the week and said the riders had regrouped after a more difficult opening to the race. Fretin's success was his fourth victory of the season and Cofidis' seventeenth, according to the team's dated announcement.

Biesterbos had won the preceding day's stage, but the next sprint brought a different winner. Three stages remained after the Bama finish. Cofidis placed Fretin's performance alongside his earlier season wins in Andalusia and Nouvelle-Aquitaine. The team also highlighted his recovery after a crash at Isbergues, with Fretin describing a return to better sensations in the team's post-race reaction.