Ruthenium-catalyzed cross-metathesis with electron-rich phenyl vinyl sulfide enables access to 2,3-dideoxy-<scp>d</scp>-ribopyranose ring system donors
units are important ringsystems found in nature. Herein, we develop a metal-mediated strategy to form this important scaffold featuring a cross-metathesis reaction of the corresponding sugar-derived hydroxyalkene with electron-rich phenyl vinylsulfide using commercially available ruthenium-catalysts under microwave irradiation as a key step. The final 2,3-dideoxyhexopyranose ring is generated in a