ツアー・オブ・ジャパン 2026

A thrilling battle decided by just one second!　Solution Tech NIPPO RALI wins the first edition team time trial

Stage 4 of the Tour of Japan 2026 featured the first edition Astemo Ooshika Stage, held in Ooshika Village, Nagano Prefecture. Riders tackled 11.4km team time trial course consisting of 3 laps of 3.8km circuit. With 312 meters of elevation gain, the course demanded both climbing ability and teamwork from the 15 participating teams. 

Astemo Utsunomiya Blitzen, the seventh team to start, increased the pace on the final lap and temporarily took the lead with a time of 15 mins 52 seconds and 62. However, the 11th team on the road, Solution Tech NIPPO RALI, delivered an outstanding performance and set a new fastest time of 15 mins 44 seconds and 18. 

Swatt Club, starting immediately after Solution Tech NIPPO RALI, posted the fastest intermediate time on the opening lap but could not maintain the pace, eventually finishing provisional second with 15 mins 49 seconds. 

The final team to start was TEAM UKYO, which had won every stage of the race so far. However, shortly after beginning the first lap, Tetsuo Yamamoto crashed on a descent, and Nahom Zeray Araya was also delayed as a result. Forced to continue with only four riders, TEAM UKYO still produced an impressive ride and pushed hard to the finish, stopping the clock at 15 mins 45 seconds and 63 — just 1 second and 45 behind Solution Tech NIPPO RALI.

The only UCI ProTeam in the race finally ended TEAM UKYO’s winning streak on Stage 4. Although TEAM UKYO failed to win the stage victory, Federico Iacomoni moved up to second overall in the general classification, keeping the team in a strong position ahead of the decisive mountain stages to come tomorrow. There are no changes in the other classification jerseys. 

Stage Winner Comment Yukiya Arashiro (Solution Tech NIPPO RALI)
“We were aiming for the stage win, but we weren’t desperate for it. We believed that if we performed at our best, victory would come naturally. The course had climbs, descents, and flat sections, so on the long flat stretch along the river, if one rider sacrificed himself, the others could recover. That allowed 3 riders to go all-out on the final lap climb. Those 3 only pulled once before the final lap — we preserved them perfectly.” 

Green Jersey Comment Tommaso Dati (TEAM UKYO)
“Losing the stage victory by just one second is painful. After the crash on the first descent, we lost Yamamoto and Zeray, so riding the rest of the course flat-out with only four riders was very difficult. We finished one second behind, but we gave our best. We want to continue racing well in the coming stages.” 

Blue Jersey Comment Benjami Prades Reverter (VC Fukuoka)
“As a team, we hoped for a slightly better result, but considering our lack of experience and specific preparation for this kind of race, losing only a small amount of time was actually a good outcome. I’m currently high in the overall standings, but I’m not sure yet if we will target the general classification. Mount Fuji can be good or bad depending on the year… We’ll do our best.” 

Red Jersey Comment Giacomo Garavaglia (Swatt Club)
“Team time trials are difficult races, but we should be happy with third place on the stage. Of course, winning is always best. Tomorrow I want to go for the mountain points, but since I’m also high on GC in fifth place, we’ll have to see if the peloton lets me go in the breakaway. Carollo is also high in the mountain classification, so hopefully one of us can get into the move.” 

White Jersey Comment Will Heath (CCACHE x Bodywrap)
“It wasn’t a long stage, but it was a hard day with very high intensity. Still, we rode well. It was my first team time trial in a UCI race, so it was a new experience for me. I think the team can be satisfied with today’s performance.” 

Stage 4 Results – Astemo Oshika
1.Solution Tech NIPPO RALLY – 15:44.18 
2.TEAM UKYO – +1.45 
3.Swatt Club – +5.11 

General Classification (Green Jersey)
1.Tommaso Dati (TEAM UKYO) – 6:00:38 
2.Federico Iacomoni (TEAM UKYO) – +10s 
3.Benjami Prades Reverter (VC Fukuoka) – +28s 

Points Classification (Blue Jersey)
1.Benjami Prades Reverter (VC Fukuoka) – 40 pts 
2.Tommaso Dati (TEAM UKYO) – 39 pts 
3.Nicolo Garibbo (TEAM UKYO) – 33 pts 

Mountains Classification (Red Jersey)
1.Giacomo Garavaglia (Swatt Club) – 10 pts 
2. Genki Yamamoto (KINAN Racing Team) – 9 pts 
3. Francesco Carollo (Swatt Club) – 8 pts 

Best Young Rider Classification (White Jersey)
1.Will Heath (CCACHE X Bodywrap) 
2.Masao Shimazaki (Japan National Team) 
3.Taito Shindo (Japan National Team)