MADRID (AFP) - Belgium's Philippe Gilbert held off a threatening pack of sprinters with a late attack to claim victory in the first stage of the Tour of Mallorca here Sunday.

Gilbert, of the Francaise des Jeux team, finished a few metres ahead of the bunch after distancing his pursuers around 1km from the finish line of the 100km stage, which finished in Palma.

Australian Graeme Brown, of Rabobank, finished second ahead of Germany's Robert Forster. Belgian Gert Steegmans, of Quick Step, finished fourth.

"I pulled away at a little over one kilometre to go and saw straight away that I had a chance," said Gilbert, a one-day race specialist whose speciality is launching attacks just before the finish line.

"I just kept the head down and didn't look back."

Monday's stage, the second of five, is over 162.7km from Cala Millor to Son Servera.