- Start of the inaugural time trial on Saturday at 5.26pm. Vincenzo Nibali will leave the starting ramp with racing bib number 1 at 8.21pm.
- Team Sky is on the hunt for its third Grand Tour of the year with Michal Kwiatkowski and David De La Cruz as leaders.
Kwiatkowski and De La Cruz to lead Team Sky
Just like at the Tour de France with Egan Bernal, Team Sky has the youngest rider at the start of La Vuelta with the 21 year-old Russian Pavel Sivakov. Defending champion Chris Froome is taking a rest after completing three Grand Tours in one year but the British team remains ambitious with the 2014 world champion Michal Kwiatkowski who was crowned in Ponferrada, Spain. The recent winner of the Tour de Pologne co-captains Team Sky along with David De La Cruz. No team stands on the record books for having won all three Grand Tours the same year with three different riders.
“I’m quite opened minded at the start of La Vuelta, I would say”, Kwiatkowski commented. “I never raced Grand Tours back to back before. I’m ready for that new challenge. I had a great Tour de Pologne after the Tour de France. Normally I’d be on kind of a holiday at this time but this year I’m lining up at this great race, for the second time in my life. I believe this is the best preparation for the World’s this year. It’s also the best way for me to develop as a GC rider. A few stages suit me well. The biggest question is if I’ll have the same legs as at the Tour de France and Tour de Pologne. We have a very strong team together with De La Cruz, Geoghegan Hart, Castroviejo, Henao, etc. We are for GC but we have to be flexible and search for stage wins as well. For me to win La Vuelta this year would be something unexpected. I know how difficult it is, so I’m not seeing myself as a GC contender because there are so many other guys aiming to do that but I’m ready to see what La Vuelta will bring…”
Sports director Gabriel Rasch rejoices with "Kwiatko" earning leader stripes at the Spanish Grand Tour. "We’re not putting too much pressure on him for the GC, but he will have a go, the Norwegian said. And there are also a lot of stages that suit him for wins. As for David, we saw last year that this race suits him very well, and he’s prepared it very well. We’re going to back him up with full support from the team to try to get the best result. One of our main strengths is our ability to stay strong together but we’ll also be looking for opportunities for riders like (Salvatore) Puccio, Dylan van Baarle…"
"La Vuelta is my goal of the season, David De La Cruz added. I've been thinking about it since my crash last year in the downhill from El Cordal (he had to abandon on stage 20). I’m excited. As I always says, when your team gives you the opportunity to be a leader and race with freedom, you work differently and get to give 120% of yourself."
ElPozo Alimentación’s commitment to sport
A sponsor of La Vuelta since 2016, ElPozo Alimentación makes sport a pillar of its entrepreneurial philosophy based on the fundamental values of sport: responsibility, commitment, respect and self-improvement. It is also a leading company in the healthy food sector in Spain and across Europe. Its involvement includes the development of the women's WNT Madrid Challenge by La Vuelta. In addition to cycling, ElPozo Alimentación has been involved with the ElPozo Murcia Fútbol Sala club for more than 25 years, renewing its support for Paralympic sport, figure skating, canoeing and synchronized swimming. The company also supports women’s sports, initiation and training infrastructures for young athletes. For all this, in addition to receiving the appraisal of the entire family of La Vuelta, ElPozo Alimentación was recently distinguished by the European Parliament as European Enterprise of Sport and Health.
The blue cars are ready
The Shimano blue cars #CochesAzules are ready to service La Vuelta again. For the 18th consecutive year, the Japanese equipment manufacturer will provide neutral assistance to all riders who line up at the start of the Spanish Grand Tour. Four cars, two motorcycles and a truck workshop, all blue, are mobilized on this 73rd edition of La Vuelta. Shimano works all year with the teams to provide appropriate assistance to all riders, regardless of the equipment they use and, on each stage, has 24 bikes, some of which are exactly the size of the first three cyclists in the overall classification, 72 wheels, 1,520 litres of energy drinks and 650 gels.
