Orica-GreenEdge rider sitting second overall at Tour of Turkey
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Rein Taaramae (Cofidis, Solutions Credits) and Adam Yates (Orica-GreenEdge) battle up the final climb during Stage 3 Tour of Turkey(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Tour of Turkey Stage 3 podium: Adam Yates (Orica-GreenEdge), Rein Taaramae (Cofidis, Solutions Credits), Romain Hardy (Cofidis, Solutions Credits)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Adam Yates won the best young rider's jersey on his debut with Orica-GreenEdge(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Adam Yates (Orica Greenedge) climbed well to take 9th(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
When Orica-GreenEdge signed the Yates twins — Adam and Simon — there was little expectation placed on their results for the 2014 season although both riders have impressed on the world stage. Adam Yates started his season by claiming the best young rider's jersey at the Tour de San Luis and has continued his good form at the Tour of Turkey as he now sits just six seconds behind race leader Rein Taaramäe (Cofidis) on the general classification after placing second on the queen stage of the race.
"Our plan for the day was to save Simon [Yates] and Adam for the climb," said Assistant Sport Director Julian Dean. "We wanted to see what they were capable of at the finish."
Unfortunately, Simon Yates crashed before final ascent of the day and immediately the team suspected he'd broken his collarbone. Post-race, the team confirmed that Simon Yates had broken his left clavicle and is out of competition for several weeks.
The team's plan of a one-two attack with the Yates brothers did not eventuate but Adam Yates, who was the only rider capable of going with Taaramäe when he attacked on the 11.5km Elmali climb, almost held on to claim a maiden win for the Australian WorldTour outfit.
With just 200 metres to go, Taaramäe put the hammer down to distance Yates and claim the win by six seconds. It was the Estonian road race champions first win since claiming a stage at the 2011 Vuelta a España.
The next test for Yates and the team will come on on stage six which features a summit finish in Selcuk where the overall is certain to be decided. While GreenEdge are yet to decide whether it will protect Yates' position or chase stage wins, the 21-year-old continues to shine on the world stage.
"Adam is a young guy," said Dean. "He obviously had a good day today. We will wait to see how he feels tomorrow and how consistently he can ride big stages. From here we will go day by day. It'll be great for us if he can hang on to his position and even better if he can go on to win."
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