Madrid — Wednesday’s stage 11 of the Vuelta a Espaa was won by Australian Kaden Groves in a furious sprint, but Remco Evenepoel retained his overall lead on a day marked by additional rider fatalities.
Julian Alaphilippe crashed out of the race with less than 70 kilometers remaining, dealing a blow to his quest for a hat-trick of world titles and to teammate Evenepoel’s Vuelta chances after more prominent riders refused to start following positive Covid tests.
Evenepoel remarked, “Losing Julian on such a quiet stage is tragic.” “This is a foolish tumble. I hope he is okay and is not in too much pain.
“He was in excellent physical condition, but I have faith in all of my teammates for the upcoming weeks.”
Groves gave BikeExchange its first victory of this year’s Vuelta on the same day that they lost team leader Simon Yates due to a positive Covid test.
“This morning, when the boys heard that Simon had tested positive for Covid, they were all fairly dejected,” said Groves, following his 191.2-kilometer run over the windy Andalusian coast to Cabo de Gata.
It was the finest method to recover from such news.
“I’m thrilled to celebrate, but I wish he were here,” remarked Groves after winning his first major tour stage.
Evenepoel finished safely in the peloton to maintain his 2min 41sec advantage over Primoz Roglic, but the Belgian lost a crucial ally in Alaphillipe.
The two-time world champion abandoned the course in an ambulance after dislocating his right shoulder in a fall that occurred with less than 70 kilometers remaining in the race.
His Quick-Step team announced in a statement that he will fly to Belgium on Thursday for more scans to rule out further harm.
The accident diminishes Alaphilippe’s prospects of winning three consecutive world championship road races. This year’s event takes place on September 25 in Wollongong, Australia.
On Tuesday, Irish sprinter Sam Bennett of Bora stepped out of the Covid competition. After winning two stages earlier in the race, he had been a close second in the points competition.
Even though Evenepoel posed a threat in the upcoming mountain stages, sprint leader Mads Pedersen wanted to amass as many points as possible in the upcoming flat stages to ensure victory.
Pedersen earned maximum points in an intermediate sprint with 10 kilometers remaining, but was overtaken in the massed charge to the finish line. The Dane finished fifth after getting hemmed in.
The Trek rider remarked, “It was fairly quick, and there were men everywhere.” I slightly misjudged the situation.
Groves finished ahead of Dutchman Danny van Poppel and Belgian Tim Merlier.
‘Paranoia’
Alaphilippe was the most recent victim of a Vuelta that has ridden exceptionally hard-hit by crashes and adverse Covid tests.
Sunday, Quick-Step lost another rider, Pieter Serry, due to a positive Covid test.
After Yates, the 2018 Vuelta champion, Pavel Sivakov of Ineos, who was also in the top 10, and three Kern Pharma riders withdrew prior to Wednesday’s 11th stage, only 154 of the 184 starters began Wednesday’s racing.
“There is some paranoia among the riders,” observed Miguel Angel Lopez of Colombia. “Every day, a few of teams start without all of their riders. We must pay close attention, wear the mask, and continue to abide by the regulations.
On Thursday, cyclists travel 192.7 kilometers through Andalusia on a fairly flat stage that concludes with a challenging 19-kilometer climb up Penas Blancas.