The second appearance of the Colombian cyclist Santiago Buitrago in Europe this season was ended this Friday due to extra-sports events in Spain.
The first stage of the Vuelta a Andalucía, in which Buitrago is one of the favorites for the title, has been suspended due to the “lack of Civil Guard troops” mobilized for the farmers' demonstrations, the organization reported this Wednesday.
“The reason for the suspension is the lack of coverage, the lack of Civil Guard troops who have had to go to their different detachments,” the general director of the Vuelta a Andalucía, Joaquín Cuevas, explained in a video.
The stage “is suspended due to the lack of Civil Guard troops due to the farmers' demonstrations,” the organization said in a statement.
🚨 OFFICIAL STATEMENT | The first stage of the Vuelta a Andalucía is suspended due to the lack of Civil Guard troops due to farmers' demonstrations. The race direction will soon decide the steps to take.#70RdS #UCIProSeries #AIOCC pic.twitter.com/o1DcL0KTVp
— Return to Andalusia (@VCANDALUCIA) February 14, 2024
“We have 100 troops plus the Rural Civil Guard who cover the pace of the race and cannot guarantee that pace,” added Cuevas.
The organization planned to meet with the technical jury and the teams to “see what will happen in the coming days,” added the race director.
What is going to happen with the rest of the Vuelta a Andalucía?
The Vuelta a Andalucía was to start this Wednesday in Almúñecar and end next Sunday in La Línea de la Concepción with the Spanish Juan Ayuso (UAE) and the Colombian Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain) as the main candidates.
This Wednesday, Spanish farmers entered their second week of demonstrations with road and infrastructure blockades to denounce the difficulties suffered by the sector.
A dozen roads were blocked this Wednesday morning in various parts of the country, according to the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT).
Farmer protests in Andalusia
José Manuel Pedrosa. Efe
Some of these blockades took place on Andalusian roads, in the provinces of Seville and Granada. The first stage of the Andalusian round was planned between Almúñecar and Cádiar, belonging to the province of Granada.
For Buitrago, this was his second race of the 2024 season. The first was the Vuelta de la Comunidad Valenciana, in which he finished second overall, 14 seconds behind the champion, the American Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates). He was second in the penultimate stage and won the youth classification.
Santiago Buitrago, on the podium of the Vuelta a la Comunidad Valenciana, along with Brandon McNulthy (center) and Aleksandr Vlasov (right).
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With AFP
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