October 15, 2018 (China) – Canada’s Alex Cataford, 25, with the UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team, wrapped up his season on a high note, taking a stellar 3rd place overall in his first performance at the UCI 2.1 level Tour of Taihu Lake in China. A hard-fought 5th place finish in the 5.5 km Prologue would prove to be promising for Cataford’s early Tour chances.

Racing well and in contention during multiple intermittent sprints in the first and second stages would put him 3rd overall in the GC standings, which he held on to with the help of his team for the remaining five stages. Cataford shared the final podium with winner, Boris Vallee (Bel) Wanty – Groupe Gobert, and Benjamin Dyball  (Aus) St. George Continental Cycling Team in second.

“What a way to finish off 2018. Held my own against the sprinters and finished 3rd in Tour of Taihu Lake. Thanks so much to my team and everyone else involved to be able to pull off this result. That’s a wrap for this season, and onto the next one,” posted Cataford on Instagram.

Final GC  (brief)
1. Boris Vallee (Bel) Wanty – Groupe Gobert 17:28:07
2. Benjamin Dyball (Aus) St. George Continental Cycling Team 0:19
3. Alexander Cataford (Can) UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team 
4. Serghei Tvetcov (Rou) UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team 0:23
5. Tyler Williams (USA) Israel Cycling Academy 0:25