Having finished second twice behind Sam Bennett earlier in the race, former world champion Mads Pedersen took his first stage win at this year’s Vuelta a España on Friday, blasting home comfortably ahead into Montilla.
The Danish Trek-Segafredo rider was to the fore inside the uphill final kilometre of stage 13, tracking an early jump by the German Pascal Ackermann (UAE Team Emirates) and then launching his own sprint inside the final 100 metres.
Frenchman Bryan Coquard (Cofidis) overhauled Ackermann for second, with the rest of the main bunch finishing in the same time.
“It definitely was the dream scenario,” said Pedersen. “We knew this finale was pretty good. The boys did really good today and everyone was focused the whole day. I’m just happy that I can finally get the win and give the boys back for all the work they’ve done so far.
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“Pascal [Ackermann] jumped early. I jumped with him. It was a long, long sprint. To follow Ackermann was a full sprint. So it was a 350m sprint today. We came here for a stage win. And now we have won. I will keep fighting to get one more.”
The win tightened his grip on the race’s green points jersey, a competition which seemed to be between himself and Bennett until the Irish rider had to withdraw prior to Tuesday’s stage due to a positive test for Covid-19. Pedersen reached out to the Carrick-on-Suir rider after his exit, wishing him well.
Had he stayed in the race Friday’s stage and this week’s earlier stage 11 would also have suited Bennett, meaning their tussle for green could have gone all the way to the race’s finish in Madrid on Sunday week.
“It’s super nice to have a comfortable lead in the points jersey but it would be nice to have Sam [Bennett] fighting for the jersey,” said Pedersen. “We’ll keep fighting for stage wins and we will see how it goes.”
Race leader Remco Evenepoel (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) finished in the main bunch and remains two minutes and 41 seconds ahead of his closest rival Primož Rogič. The Slovenian has won the past three editions of the race but came into the Vuelta short on form after crashing out of the Tour de France. Both riders will aim for a strong showing on Saturday’s gruelling finish atop the Sierra de la Pandera climb.
Meanwhile, the Irish national team for the upcoming Rás na mBan has been announced by Cycling Ireland. Eve McCrystal and Linda Kelly will line out weeks after piloting tandem partners Katie-George Dunlevy and Josephine Healion to gold and bronze medals at the paracycling world championships.
The team will be completed by Emily Kay, Kelly Murphy and Lara Gillespie, who recently competed in the European track championships. The race runs from September 7th to 11th.
“We are excited to once again select a strong and experienced team for Rás na mBan,” said Cycling Ireland’s head coach Neill Delahaye. “The parcours and race format this year should lend itself to very exciting and close racing. The combination of tandem pilots and track squad riders is a composition of complementary skills and ability which we believe has the potential to make a big impact on the race.
“The team is under expert guidance with Barry Monaghan as DS [directeur sportif]. I know Barry intends to deliver a strategy to be competitive for both stages and general classification. The riders are really looking forward to taking on the challenge from more established road teams and delivering their best on home roads.”
