Cyclist Rein Taaramäe narrowly misses out on victory in UAE

Estonian cyclist Rein Taaramäe narrowly missed out on a stage victory at the ongoing Sharjah Tour in the United Arab Emirates.
In the third stage of the UCI 2.2 event, an 11.16-kilometer time trial, Taaramäe, who races for the Kinan Racing Team, lost by just 0.04 seconds.
Stage winner, French cyclist Quentin Bezzaa (Wagner Bazin WB), completed the course in 13 minutes and 24.19 seconds, averaging a speed of 49.96 km/h.
Taaramäe did at least get his team's first podium finish of the season.
The reigning Estonian time trial champion expressed slight disappointment at missing the win by such a slim margin but described his ride as nearly perfect.
"I feel like I still have top-level strength, and that's a very good feeling," Taaramäe said via his team's website.
He also praised his teammates, staff, and the team's equipment, adding, "I'm looking forward to tomorrow's tough mountain stage."
Taaramäe has also climbed to second place in the overall standings, trailing leader Mario Aparicio of Spain (Burgos Burpellet BH) by just one second.
The fourth stage of the tour will challenge riders with a 132.23-kilometer route which includes a difficult mountain finish, a steep six-kilometer climb at Al-Suhub, featuring an average gradient of 8.4 percent.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Anders Nõmm