Itamar Einhorn (Israel Startup Nation) nearly captured the first win for an Israeli rider in the men's pro race at the Tour Colombia 2.1 on Wednesday, but the 22-year-old nearly had a mishap on his way to a third-place finish when he collided with Colombia teammate Edwin Avila in the final The 22-year-old nearly suffered a mishap when he collided with Colombian teammate Edwin Avila in the last 50 meters on his way to a third-place finish.

Both riders had permission to sprint, but when Einhorn tried to go around Alvaro Hodeg (Deceuninck-Quick Step) and winner Juan Sebastián Morano (UAE Team Emirates), he went directly into Avila's path. Nevertheless, Einhorn held on and finished on the podium for the second stage.

"Everyone saw the video and said I did something to him, but the team plan was for me to sprint for myself and for him to sprint for himself," Einhorn told Cycling News before the start of stage 3 in Pipa on Thursday.

"So it was part of the plan and we met together, but if you look closely at the video, I didn't do it on purpose, I had nowhere else to go at that moment. He was a little bit behind me and I couldn't see him well. It wasn't until I saw the video that I realized it was him."

Einhorn was sprinting into the wind, but even without the contact with his teammate, he was a little too late.

"If I had gone faster I could have gone for second place, but I don't know. I had a good sprint, but I didn't have the power, so maybe I could have been happy with third."

"I'm not sure if I would have been able to finish second. So I'm happy with what I did and I learned a lot from it."

The Israel-based team, in its first year on the World Tour, has already won one race, with Frenchman Rudy Barbier taking a stage win in the sprint at the Vuelta a San Juan in Argentina last month. But the team has made it clear since its inception in 2015 that it is a continental team that exists as a path for Israeli cyclists to reach the top end of the sport. Einhorn's podium finish is another step in that direction. It is also a new step in Einhorn's growth.

"I've finished fourth many times with the Devo team and the French team, and a podium with a professional team has a special meaning," Einhorn said. But I'm still third and it's far from what I wanted. But with luck and experience I think I can do it."

"I got a lot of messages from Israel and I can finally show that all the hard work I have put in over the last few years has paid off. One of our team goals last year was to get on the podium in Israel, and we finally did, and now that we've achieved the first goal, we'll be aiming for the second."

He said, however, that there will be no winner this week in Colombia.

"The stages will be harder and a bit harder for me. I also have to return the favor to other sprinters like Avila."