AUSTRALIAN CYCLIST BEN O’Connor soloed to a stunning victory in stage six of the Vuelta a Espana on Thursday, taking the red jersey from three-time winner Primoz Roglic.
The Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale rider and Gijs Leemreize attacked from a breakaway group before O’Connor later left the Dutchman behind with 27 kilometres to go.
O’Connor opened up a defendable lead of 4:51 in the general classification ahead of veteran Roglic, as the peloton came in well over six minutes down.
Cork’s Eddie Dunbar finished alongside Roglic in the red jersey group, moving up five places to 33rd in the overall standings, while Grand Tour debutant Darren Rafferty was more than 17 minutes adrift.
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“I felt a little bit in my own world today… I just went for it, I felt today was just a day to seize my opportunity and I laid it all out there,” O’Connor told Eurosport.
“I felt I could win this stage from the start — it’s pretty special when you can just go out and crush it like that.”
O’Connor became the fifth Australian to win stages at all three Grand Tours after winning at the Giro in 2020 and at the Tour de France in 2021.
“I enjoyed today a lot, it was beautiful racing all round,” he continued.
“(Wearing red at La Vuelta) is going to be a once in a lifetime experience maybe, so I will enjoy every moment… it’s an excellent opportunity and I will savour it as much as I can.”
O’Connor finished four minutes 33 seconds ahead of Italian Marco Frigo while Florian Lipowitz came in third, with the German rising to fourth in the general classification.
UAE Team Emirates’ Joao Almeida is third overall, trailing Roglic by eight seconds, while defending champion Sepp Kuss languishes six minutes 31 seconds behind new leader O’Connor.
Friday’s hilly seventh stage takes riders 180.5km from Archidona to Cordoba.
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O'Connor blows Vuelta open as he racks up red jersey lead in solo win
AUSTRALIAN CYCLIST BEN O’Connor soloed to a stunning victory in stage six of the Vuelta a Espana on Thursday, taking the red jersey from three-time winner Primoz Roglic.
The Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale rider and Gijs Leemreize attacked from a breakaway group before O’Connor later left the Dutchman behind with 27 kilometres to go.
O’Connor opened up a defendable lead of 4:51 in the general classification ahead of veteran Roglic, as the peloton came in well over six minutes down.
Cork’s Eddie Dunbar finished alongside Roglic in the red jersey group, moving up five places to 33rd in the overall standings, while Grand Tour debutant Darren Rafferty was more than 17 minutes adrift.
“I felt a little bit in my own world today… I just went for it, I felt today was just a day to seize my opportunity and I laid it all out there,” O’Connor told Eurosport.
“I felt I could win this stage from the start — it’s pretty special when you can just go out and crush it like that.”
O’Connor became the fifth Australian to win stages at all three Grand Tours after winning at the Giro in 2020 and at the Tour de France in 2021.
“I enjoyed today a lot, it was beautiful racing all round,” he continued.
“(Wearing red at La Vuelta) is going to be a once in a lifetime experience maybe, so I will enjoy every moment… it’s an excellent opportunity and I will savour it as much as I can.”
O’Connor finished four minutes 33 seconds ahead of Italian Marco Frigo while Florian Lipowitz came in third, with the German rising to fourth in the general classification.
UAE Team Emirates’ Joao Almeida is third overall, trailing Roglic by eight seconds, while defending champion Sepp Kuss languishes six minutes 31 seconds behind new leader O’Connor.
Friday’s hilly seventh stage takes riders 180.5km from Archidona to Cordoba.
– © AFP 2024
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Ben O'Connor Cycling Eddie Dunbar Primoz Roglic Vuelta a Espana