Marc Soler He won his third victory in the Tour of Spain After a brutal rise in the Lakes of CovadongaThe Spanish cyclist burst into tears after crossing the finish line first in one of the most representative stages of the race.
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The third and final week of the 79th edition of the Tour of Spain started with high mountains. Stage 16 had a route of 181.5 km, between Luanco and the mythical ascent of Lagos de Covadonga which appeared for the twenty-third time in the Iberian race.
Ben O’Connor and Primoz Roglic
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Van Aert retired
The breakaway formed after 35 kilometres, with several riders, including Matthew Riccitello, Marc Soler, Wout Van Aert, Isaac del Toro and Jay Vine, breaking away from the group at a very strong pace.
The breakaway group was riding at a difference of about 5 minutes with a peloton that was led by Movistar. The Colombian Nairo Quintana He was pulling the train in a very special stage for him, in 2016 he conquered the climb of Lagos de Covadonga and it was the key victory for the title of that Vuelta a España.
With 47 kilometers to go to the finish line, the alarms went off due to the fall of van Aert, who lost his balance on the descent and had to retire from the race in which he was the leader of the mountains and the points leader. His right knee did not allow him to continue.
The original escape split up and a very small group began the ascent to the Lakes of Covadonga, while maintaining a 5-minute difference over a peloton that had not made any major movements.
Max Poole, Filippo Zanna and Marc Soler They imposed the pace in the mountains and attacked their breakaway companions to go for the victory. Behind them, Mikel Landa launched himself alone to cut time in the general classification, but he was left wanting. The leader Ben O’Connor suffered and lost his legs.
Ben O’Connor
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Decided on victory, Marc Soler He set out on his own to conquer the extremely difficult mountain prize in Lagos de Covadonga. The Spaniard showed strength and raised his arms in an electrifying fraction.
The Australian Ben O’Connor He was punished by the mountain and lost ground in the fight with Primoz Roglic, who withstood the attacks of Enrique Mas which worked in favor of one of his rivals in the general classification.
In the end, O’Connor dHe defended the red jersey by just a few seconds after gritting his teeth in the last kilometer. Roglic also suffered in the mountains, but rose to the occasion in Lago de Covadonga.
HAROLD YEPES
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