Vuelta a España
| 2011 Vuelta a España | |
| Race details | |
|---|---|
| Date | September (since 1995) |
| Region | Spain |
| English name | Tour of Spain |
| Local name(s) | Vuelta Ciclista a España (Spanish) |
| Nickname(s) | The Vuelta |
| Discipline | Road |
| Competition | UCI World Tour |
| Type | Grand Tour |
| Organiser | Unipublic |
| Race director | Javier Guillén |
| History | |
| First edition | 1935 |
| Editions | 66 (as of 2011) |
| First winner | Gustaaf Deloor (BEL) |
| Most wins |
|
| Most recent | Juan José Cobo (ESP) |
The Vuelta a España (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈbwelta a esˈpaɲa]; English: Tour of Spain) is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages. Individual times to finish each stage are totalled to determine the overall winner at the end of the race. The rider with the lowest aggregate time at the end of each day wears the Red Jersey.
Contents |
History
First held in 1935 and annually since 1955, the Vuelta runs for three weeks in a changing route across Spain. The inaugural event (1935) saw 50 entrants face a 3,411 km (2,119 mi.) course over only 14 stages, averaging over 240 km (149 mi.) per stage. It was inspired by the success of the Tours in France and Italy, and the boost they brought to the circulations of their sponsoring newspapers (L'Auto and La Gazzetta dello Sport respectively); Juan Pujol of the daily Informaciones instigated the race to increase its circulation.
It was formerly held in the spring (usually late April), with a few editions held in June in the 1940s, but in 1995 the race moved to September to avoid the direct competition with the Giro d'Italia, held in May. As a result, the Vuelta is now often seen as an important preparation course for the World Championships which moved to October in the same year. A Vuelta had been organized in August and September 1950.
The course typically includes up to three time trials, and a fair amount of mountain stages. Since 1994, and often before (such as the inaugural edition), the finish of the Vuelta is traditionally the Spanish capital, Madrid, although Bilbao (in the 1950s) and San Sebastián (in the 1970s) were both recurring finish cities for a long period. Behind Madrid, three cities share second place for most Vuelta departures: Gijón, Bilbao and one time finish city Jerez de la Frontera. In 1997, the Vuelta started abroad for the first time, in Lisbon, Portugal. The first ever Vuelta-start outside of the Iberian Peninsula took place in 2009, when the Dutch city of Assen hosted the prologue of the 64st Vuelta.
In 1999, for the first time, the course crossed the Alto de El Angliru in Asturias, which climbs 1,573 meters (5,160 feet) over 12.9 km (8 mi.) with grades as steep as 23.6 percent (at Cueña les Cabres) making it one of the steepest in Europe. Credit for the discovery of this climb and its addition to the Vuelta goes to Miguel Prieto.
The overall leader at present wears a red jersey, although previously it has been the "Maillot amarillo" (Yellow Maillot) and the "Jersey de Oro" (Golden jersey)—the Spanish counterpart to the yellow jersey of the Tour de France. Other jerseys honour the best climber (King of the Mountains) and the best sprinter (points competition) [awarded a blue with yellow fish jersey that is sponsored by Spain's fishing and marine industry]. Usually there are other cycling jerseys awarded, such as for points leaders in the "Metas Volantes" (intermediate sprints) and for the combination category (a point system that honours the best rider in combined totals for best overall, points and mountains classification).
The record for most wins is held jointly by Switzerland's Tony Rominger, who won three consecutive Vueltas in 1992, 1993 and 1994; and Roberto Heras of Spain, winner in 2000, 2003 and 2004. Heras also won the 2005 event, but was disqualified for a doping offense. Spaniards have dominated, winning 30 of the 66 runnings of the Vuelta. France, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Colombia, Ireland (Sean Kelly in 1988), Russia and most recently Kazakhstan have also had first place finishers.
1934-36
The first races were run at the national level and were promoted by the manufacturers of bicycles Eibar. So the tour was Eibar - Madrid - Eibar, called the Republic Grand Prix. The first stop was Madrid - Valladolid.
1935-1960
In early 1935, Clemente Lopez Doriga, in collaboration with Juan Pujol, director of information daily, organized the Vuelta a España, with a distance 3431 km, in a total of 14 stages. That year saw the first great duel in the history of the Vuelta, between Belgium's Gustaaf Deloor, who ultimately won, and Mariano Cañardo Spanish, runner-up. The second edition of the Vuelta, finally held despite the delicate political situation, was also marked by the Deeloor repeat, this time keeping the lead from the first to the last day. After the first two editions, the Spanish race suffered a slowdown because of the Spanish Civil War.
In 1941 the Vuelta resumed competition with the peloton almost entirely Spanish, with very little foreign representation. That year the dispute was the first time trial of the Vuelta. Julian Berrendero was proclaimed winner of the Spanish race, he renewed the title a year later. Also Berrendero became king of the mountain for three consecutive years.
Because of World War II and the precarious economic situation, again this produced another break in the running of the Vuelta a España.
In 1945, the Journal already took over the Mavericks organization and competition, although again with a poor foreign representation in the peloton. On this occasion, Delio Rodriguez took the final victory. That year also introduced for the first time the points classification, but not be stable until 1955. Four editions were played until 1950, at which time I resigned from the newspaper definitely organize the Tour of Spain.
It was not until 1955 when again held the Spanish race, from the time in charge of the Courier Spanish / The Basque people. Since then, the Vuelta a España has been run annually. In addition, the Vuelta became stably held between the months of April and May, while its conclusion had previously ranged between April and August. Another variation was the number of participants, hitherto very low, which was doubled, and larger populations of large foreign and national figures.
1960-1970
The prestige of the Vuelta was growing and, increasingly, there were stars in the presence of cyclists on the international scene. During the late 1950s came the first successes in the overall standings of Italian and French riders. In the 1960s, they would also be joined by German and Dutch riders. In 1963, Jacques Anquetil won the general classification, establishing himself as the first rider to win all three Grand Tours. Five years later, in 1968, Felice Gimondi would do the same. Only Eddy Merckx in 1973, Bernard Hinault in 1978 and 1983 and Alberto Contador who won in 2008 managed to repeat the feat.
Antonio Karmany dominated the mountain classification for three consecutive years, then was relieved by Julio Jimenez, who won it for another three years.
In 1965, Rik Van Looy became the first rider to repeat victory in the points classification. Jan Janssen in 1968 and 1974 Perurena Sunday would do the same, winning this classification twice.
During mid 60's the organizer of the Vuelta, El Correo Spanish / The Basque people, went through some financial problems that endangered the dispute of the competition. However, during that time all editions ended normally. In 1968, the Vuelta was hit by a terrorist attack and other events, having to cancel the 15th stage. Fortunately, there were no fatalities.
1970-1980
The '70s began with the triumph of Luis Ocaña, who was already established in the international squad as one of the greats of cycling.
José Manuel Fuente, with victories in 1972 and 1974, became the third rider who won two Tours of Spain. A few years later, Bernard Hinault repeat the feat, which was also achieved by Pedro Delgado during the 1980s.
In 1973, Eddy Merckx managed to win the Vuelta and he did in a landslide, winning all six stages and individual rankings with the exception of the classification of the mountain, which he finished second.
Freddy Maertens in 1977 echoed a similar domination Merckx demonstrated a few years earlier, by winning thirteen stages and other individual classifications except the mountain. In the mid-1970s, Andres Oliva also managed to earn the champion of the mountain title in three editions of the Vuelta.
Frenchman Bernard Hinault came out in 1978 as an international cycling star. The same year, Hinault won his first Tour de France. The last stage of that edition also had to be suspended because of riots and barricades that prevented the normal course of it.
When 1979 the Courier Spanish / The Basque left to sponsor the Spanish race, Vuelta was again endangered. However, the company Unipublic, which continues to organize the various editions of the Vuelta today, took charge of the competition. This, coupled with increased advertising and the beginning of the broadcasts via television, further increased the level of the Vuelta.
1980-1990
In the early 1980s, two names stand out in the supplementary classifications: José Luis Laguía, who won the mountain classification five times, and Sean Kelly, who won four times in the points classification.
In 1982 came the first case of dispossession of the title for doping. Two days after the end of the competition, Angel Arroyo (along with a few other riders) were disqualified and lost his victory to Marino Lejarreta. Despite the application of the 'B, he again tested positive. Arroyo was given a ten minute penalty, and ultimately ended up placing thirteenth in the general classification.
Next year's edition was the first appearance of the Lagos de Covadonga and final stage, an ascent that would become, over the years, the most iconic climb of the Vuelta a España. In 1984 it played the issue that ended with the smallest difference between the first and second place. Eric Caritoux, a complete unknown until then, managed to win the Vuelta with only six seconds ahead of Alberto Fernandez in second place.
The end of the 80s was marked by the rise of Colombian cycling, which presented a strong command particularly in the mountain stages. Names such as Lucho Herrera (winner in 1987) or Fabio Parra (2nd in 1989) appeared in the latest editions of the decade. However, the return of one of the rulers at that time was Pedro Delgado, with two victories (1985 and 1989), a second place, and two third place finishes.
1990–2000
The first half of the 1990s was marked by the dominance of Swiss Tony Rominger, the first rider to win three times and win the race consecutively between 1992 and 1994. In the 93 years, Tony Rominger won the individual classifications.
The fiftieth edition of the Vuelta, which was held in 1995, coincided with the change of dates. The Vuelta a España came to be held in September, and near the end of the season. That year Laurent Jalabert won all classifications, something no one else has achieved in the Spanish race. The Frenchman also was also a four-time winner of the points classification, matching the previous record set by Kelly in the '80s.
In 1997, the tour started for the first time in a foreign country. They began in Lisbon, on the occasion of Expo '98.
The ascent of the Alto de L'Angliru is part of a stage for the first time in 1999, with the victory of Jose Maria Jimenez, four-time winner of the classification of the mountain. The reputation of the climb grew rapidly because of its hardness and the spectacular rise.
2000-2010
The first editions of the 2000s were marked by the dominance of Roberto Heras, who achieved victory on three occasions, and in 2005 did it for the fourth time. However, as happened with Angel Arroyo in 1982, was disqualified days after the end of the competition after testing positive in a doping test, this time for use of EPO. This positive development was later ratified by the counter-analysis and Heras was stripped of his title, benefiting the Russian cyclist Denis Menchov. In 2006 Alexandre Vinokourov won after a struggle with the then leader of the UCI Pro Tour, Alejandro Valverde. In the 2007 edition Denis Menchov again clinched the overall victory by more than three minutes over the Spanish cyclists Carlos Sastre and Samuel Sánchez. In 2008, the winner was the Spaniard Alberto Contador, who won that year's Giro d'Italia, and became the first Spanish man to win all three Grand Tours. In 2009, the Tour began in Drenthe, Netherlands, continuing through Belgium and Germany. The final winner was Alejandro Valverde, who adopted a conservative stance without winning any stage and sprinting in the final meters to achieve bonuses. His main rivals were Samuel Sanchez (second place), Cadel Evans (third), Ivan Basso, Robert Gesink and Ezequiel Mosquera. All of them suffered critical falls or punctures such as Evans in Monachil.
Leaders Jersey
The leader of the tour is permitted to wear a jersey of a particular color signifying the lead, as in the Tour de France (maillot jaune or yellow jersey) and the Giro d'Italia (maglia rosa or pink jersey). The color of the leader's jersey of the Vuelta a España has changed several times since the original tour. The organizers who revived the Vuelta following its multiple suspensions since 1936 usually changed the color of the jersey. The leader's jersey began as orange in 1935, became white in 1941, then back to orange in 1942. It was white with a horizontal red stripe from 1945-1950. In 1955, when the Courier resurrected the Vuelta, yellow became the color of the leader's jersey, the same color as in the Tour de France. Except for the 1977 Vuelta, when the jersey was orange, a yellow jersey was worn until 1998, when the color was deepened to a gold hue. However, for the 2010 edition, the colour of the leader's jersey was changed to red.
Since the 1950 Vuelta, the leaders of the other race classifications have been permitted to wear identifying jerseys (previously, there was an official mountain classification, but no identifying jersey). For a long time, a blue jersey identified the leader of the points classification, green the leader of the mountain classification, and red the leader of the sprints classification. Recently, these other classifications have taken on the same colors as the Tour de France.
Statistics
In the table below, the ten smallest margins between the winner and the second placed cyclists at the end of the Vuelta are given.
| Winning margin | Year | Opponents |
|---|---|---|
| 6" | 1984 | Éric Caritoux – Alberto Fernández Blanco |
| 11" | 1974 | José Manuel Fuente – Joaquim Agostinho |
| 13" | 1956 | Angelo Conterno – Jesús Loroño |
| 2011 | Juan José Cobo – Chris Froome | |
| 14" | 1975 | Agustin Tamames – Agustin Tamames |
| 18" | 1982 | Marino Lejarreta – Michel Pollentier |
| 2005 | Denis Menchov – Carlos Sastre | |
| 28" | 2003 | Roberto Heras – Isidro Nozal |
| 29" | 1993 | Tony Rominger – Alex Zülle |
| 30" | 2004 | Roberto Heras – Santiago Pérez |
| 33" | 1964 | Raymond Poulidor – Luis Otano |
| 35" | 1989 | Pedro Delgado – Fabio Parra |
Stage wins
14 riders have won 10 or more stages. Riders who are still active are indicated in bold.
| Rank | Name | Country | Wins |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delio Rodríguez | ESP | 39 |
| 2 | Alessandro Petacchi | ITA | 20 |
| 3 | Laurent Jalabert | FRA | 18 |
| Rik Van Looy | BEL | 18 | |
| 5 | Sean Kelly | IRL | 16 |
| 6 | Gerben Karstens | NED | 14 |
| 7 | Freddy Maertens | BEL | 13 |
| 8 | Marcel Wüst | GER | 12 |
| Tony Rominger | SUI | 12 | |
| 10 | Domingo Perurena | ESP | 11 |
| Julián Berrendero | ESP | 11 | |
| Augustin Tamames | ESP | 11 | |
| 13 | Roberto Heras | ESP | 10 |
| Eddy Planckaert | BEL | 10 |
Records
- Most Vuelta a España victories: Tony Rominger and Roberto Heras, 3
- Most Vuelta a España Stage wins: Delio Rodriguez, 39
- Most stage wins in one edition: Freddy Maertens in 1977, 13
- Most individual time trial wins: Abraham Olano, Alex Zülle, Tony Rominger and Melcior Mauri, 6
- Most number of victories by country: Spain, 28
- Most days as leader: Alex Zülle, 48
- Most mountains classification victories: José Luis Laguía, 5
- Most points classification victories: Sean Kelly and Laurent Jalabert, 4
- Most number of intermediate sprints classification victories: Miguel Ángel Iglesias, 5
- Largest margin of victory: Delio Rodriguez over Julián Berrendero in 1945, 30' 8"
- Smallest margin of victory: Eric Caritoux over Alberto Fernández in 1984, 6 seconds
- Least number of participants: 1941, 32
- Greatest number of participants: 2002, 207
- Fastest average speed: 2001, 42.534 km/h
- Slowest average speed: 1941, 26.262 km/h
- Longest edition: 1941, 4,442 km
- Shortest edition: 1963, 2,419 km
See also
References
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