Cycling: Tom Wijfje wins Tour du Faso opening stage
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on AIB
Dutchman Tom Wijfje won the first stage of the 2026 Tour du Faso between Ouagadougou and Kaya, over 144 kilometres, in 3 hours 29 minutes 10 seconds. He took the yellow jersey with an eight-second lead over Burkina Faso’s Souleymane Koné, while South Africa’s Gustav Basson completed the podium, AIB reports.
Dutchman Tom Wijfje won the first stage of the 2026 Tour du Faso on Friday, covering the 144 kilometres between Ouagadougou and Kaya, and took the yellow jersey, according to the Burkina Information Agency (AIB).
Wijfje finished in 3 hours 29 minutes 10 seconds, at an average speed of 41.307 km/h, ahead of Burkina Faso’s Souleymane Koné and South Africa’s Gustav Basson. The three riders broke away from the peloton about 20 kilometres from the finish, with a lead of nearly 50 seconds. The Dutchman now leads Koné by eight seconds in the overall standings and Burkina Faso’s Paul Daumont by 54 seconds. He also wears the green points jersey.
Paul Daumont, the previous wearer of the yellow jersey, finished fifth. Morocco’s Youssef Bdadou won the intermediate sprints classification and Burkina Faso’s Soumaïla Ilboudo won the best young rider classification. Burkina Faso leads the team standings ahead of the Belgian Flanders team. The second stage, covering 129.75 kilometres, will link Ouagadougou and Koudougou on Saturday, AIB reports.
