(Reuters) - Jhonatan Narvaez won the Tour Down Under title for the first time on Sunday, the UAE Team Emirates rider crossing the line in Adelaide in the peloton at the end of the sixth stage to finish nine seconds ahead of Movistar's Javier Romo.
The Ecuadorian, who was runner-up in the race around South Australia last year, held onto his overnight advantage during the final stage, having claimed the ochre jersey after a decisive victory the previous day.
Sam Welsford won the 90-km (55-mile) stage in a sprint after a series of 20 circuits around Adelaide city centre, the Australian securing his third stage of the week and the points jersey for his Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe team.
"The stage today was one of the hardest of the week because it wasn't really safe," said Narvaez. "We know sometimes if you race or not depends on the other contenders, so it made it more dangerous. But I'm happy.
"There were two crashes in the last three kilometres. It's not easy when 150 guys are trying to go into one corner at 70 kmh, it's dangerous but it's cycling and we saved the day."
Narvaez, competing for UAE Team Emirates for the first time since joining from Ineos Grenadiers, had taken the overall lead on Saturday with victory on the race's queen stage, which climaxed with a series of climbs up the iconic Willunga Hill.
The 27-year-old overturned a four-second deficit on Romo, finishing three seconds ahead of the Spaniard at the line and claiming an additional 10-bonus seconds to take the leaders' jersey.
That meant Narvaez only needed to mark the other contenders to win and he was given a scare as crashes took down several riders late in the race, but he managed to stay upright to claim his first victory on the UCI World Tour.
"It's really big," Narvaez said of the win. "It means a lot for me. For the team, it's my first year here and to start like this is excellent."
(Reporting by Michael Church; Editing by William Mallard)
