Patrick Bevin of New Zealand won the Tour of Turkey after the eighth and final stage was canceled after only 25 kilometers of racing.

In Istanbul, heavy rain caused “extremely slippery” roads, causing riders to request that the race be stopped.

The 141.5km stage, which had given 31-year-old Bevin his first race win, was canceled by the judges.

After winning the seventh stage on Saturday, he had only recently taken over the leader’s jersey.

Despite the magnitude of the victory, the Israel-Premier Tech rider was saddened by the race’s abrupt conclusion.

“Because the roads were so slick, it was a wise move. However, it’s a shame that we weren’t able to race through Istanbul after such a wonderful week of racing “Bevin remarked.

“Every day, the team that we had here fought. It’s amazing to be able to return something to the guys.”

Jay Vine of Alpecin-Fenix was 20 seconds down in second place, with Argentine Eduardo Sepulveda of Drone Hopper-Androni Giocattoli a further 20 seconds back in third.