A serious mountain stage in the Tour of Turkey totally shook up the general classification in stage 5. Israel Start-Up Nation’s climber, Sebastian Berwick, was in the mix.

Over the last few days, Seb Berwick worked hard to get the sprint train into position. He was the first man chasing breakaways and closing gaps. In stage 5, the team roles were reversed.

First things first. Matthias Brändle decided early in the stage to spend most of his time in the breakaway of the day. After a group of riders went, the Austrian closed the gap and showed his strength in front of the race.

On the second categorized climb of the day, the gap decreased a little, but there was still a significant distance between the front group and the bunch before the final ascent to the finish started.

Brändle said he had great legs today. “We worked well together and grew our lead after the second climb to four minutes. The headwind in the last twenty kilometers was a game changer though. I attacked a few times on the final climb and enjoyed my time in the break today.”

The team protected Berwick sublimely in the beginning for the final climb, and after that it was up to the 21-year-old himself to put up a show.

Till three kilometers to go, the Australian was in the first group. When competitors started attacking, he chose to keep climbing at his own pace, finishing 19th.

“I gave everything I had”, he would say right after the finish. “I hoped for a top-10, but that was just out of reach today.”

Berwick moved up 130 positions in the general classification and is now sitting in 19th.

Pics: VeloImages, Bettini Photos and Sjors Beukeboom.