La Vuelta Ciclista a España

Lisbon, the exceptional capital of Portugal and a city that played a vital role during the Age of Discovery and Exploration, was the place where many of the world’s best riders gathered for the start of the season’s final Grand Tour – the Vuelta a España.

An individual time trial, held over a 12km mainly flat course along the coastline on the roads to Oeiras, established an initial pecking order, already making for some interesting gaps between the red jersey contenders. Kasper Asgreen, a multiple ITT National Champion, produced a strong effort and provisionally held third place, thanks to an impressive 55.31/km/h average speed, before eventually concluding this opening day won by Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates) as the best placed T-Rex Quick-Step rider, only a handful of seconds separating him from the top ten.

La Vuelta continues on Sunday on the Portuguese roads, this time with a 194km road stage to Ourem. Alto da Batalha, a fourth-category climb that will be topped with just twenty kilometers to go, is where some riders could try to attack in order to increase their chances of victory.

Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele / Getty Images