Belgian rider Wout van Aert claimed victory in the 13th stage of the Vuelta a España, a demanding 192-kilometer (about 119-mile) ride from Almuñécar to Loja in southern Spain. Although the stage didn’t finish on a summit, riders faced three climbs along the way, including a tough one just 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) from the finish line, making for an unpredictable and aggressive race.
Two breakaway groups formed early on, splitting the field. One group pushed hard for the stage win, while a second chase group—featuring van Aert, Buitrago, and several other contenders—worked to close the gap, which at one point stretched past two minutes before narrowing to just 34 seconds with 41 kilometers (about 25 miles) left. Meanwhile, the main pack, protecting overall leader Enric Mas along with rivals Primož Roglič and Felix Gall, rode cautiously, finishing more than four and a half minutes behind.
Colombia’s Harold Tejada moved up to ninth place overall after Austrian rider Gregor Mühlberger withdrew from the race following a crash early in the stage. Fellow Colombian Santiago Buitrago held onto his lead in the mountains classification. Denmark’s Mattias Skjelmose also benefited from the day’s chaos, using the breakaway to defend his seventh-place overall position.
The race continues Saturday with another pivotal mountain stage between Jaén and Sierra de la Pandera, covering 154 kilometers (96 miles) and ending with an 11-kilometer (6.8-mile) climb averaging a brutal 7.5% grade.
For the full story and more details, check out the original article on El Tiempo.
Source: Harold Tejada subió en la general y Santiago Buitrago mantuvo liderato de montaña tras etapa de la Vuelta a España (eltiempo.com). English version produced with AI assistance.
Image: Blue Mountains Library, Local Studies, BY-SA 2.0 (via Openverse).