Bajaj Pune Grand Tour International Cycling Competition; ‘Prologue Race’ Prize Distribution Ceremony Concludes in a Festive Atmosphere

Fergus Browning of Malaysia’s Terengganu team tops the prologue; strong Indian impression by Asian medalist Harshveer Singh

Pune, Jan 2026: Under the Bajaj Pune Grand Tour International Cycling Competition, the 7.5-kilometre ‘Prologue Race’ organised between Namdar Gopal Krishna Gokhale Chowk and KFC on Jungli Maharaj Road was successfully conducted. The prize distribution ceremony of this race was held at Namdar Gopal Krishna Gokhale Chowk in a festive atmosphere and received an enthusiastic response from citizens.

The Bajaj Pune Grand Tour 2026, India’s first-ever multi-day men’s road cycling competition in the UCI 2.2 category, began with great enthusiasm on Monday afternoon. This historic competition was inaugurated with the prologue stage at Namdar Gopal Krishna Gokhale Chowk near Deccan Gymkhana.

The prizes were distributed to the winning cyclists by Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar, Divisional Commissioner Dr. Chandrakant Pulkundwar, Cycling Federation of India Secretary General Dato Maninder Pal Singh, and other dignitaries.

Results of the ‘Prologue Race’ are as follows:
The prologue, which set the tone for this five-day international competition, began at exactly 1.30 pm. Sachin Desai of the Indian National Development Team was the first cyclist to hit the road. The spectators present at the starting point gave him a rousing welcome with chants of “Sachin, Sachin”.

However, by the end of the day, the honours were claimed by Australian cyclist Fergus Browning, riding for Malaysia’s Terengganu Cycling Team. He recorded the fastest time in the prologue by completing the 7.5 km distance in just 08:05.89 minutes. Maintaining a speed of over 50 km per hour, Browning secured the yellow jersey and will start Tuesday’s first stage from the leading position.

After winning the prologue, Browning said, “I pushed hard right from the start. On the final descent, the focus was only on maintaining speed. This kind of competition is happening in India for the first time. The organisers have made excellent preparations. The roads were excellent and the security arrangements were also very good. I am especially looking forward to the upcoming mountainous stages.”

In a very close contest, fellow Australian Dylan Hopkins (Roojai Insurance Winspace, Thailand) finished second with a time of 08:06.33, while Estonia’s Andreas Miltiadis (Quick Pro Team) finished third with 08:08.92. Belgium’s Yorben Laurison (Tarteletto–Isorex) finished fourth, while Zeb Kyffin of the Terengganu team finished fifth. All five cyclists have secured leading starting positions for Stage 1.

Promising performance by Indian cyclists:
From the Indian side, Harshveer Singh Sekhon (Indian National Team) recorded a time of 08:42.07, finishing as the best Indian and the third-best Asian cyclist in the prologue. As a result, he earned the 26th starting position for Stage 1.

Following him, Vishwajeet Singh (08:47.33) and Navin John (08:49.44) secured the 35th and 43rd positions respectively, underlining India’s strong presence in an international-level competition. This experience of competing against world-class cyclists on home roads proved valuable for Indian cycling.