Still suffering from stomach problems, the BORA – hansgrohe leader couldn’t follow the main bunch in the final of a fast, flat stage to Tarragona. Again, he lost some minutes to burry all GC hopes for this Vuelta, while the fast men in the peloton contested in a bunch sprint. M. Trentin proved to be the fastest, while Michael Schwarzmann took 12th place today.
After yesterday’s first showdown in the mountains of the Vuelta, today’s stage was one to favor the sprinters in the peloton. The 198.2 kilometers between Escaldes-Engordany and Tarragona showed only one third category climb and was mainly downhill, leaving Andorra towards the Mediterranean cost. But the last 10k were very technical with lots of roundabouts and a slight uphill drag to the last kilometer. With possible splits in this final section, awareness was key today.
For BORA – hansgrohe it was a day to recover from yesterday’s setback, when Rafal Majka suffered a really bad day, caused by serious stomach problems. Hoping that the teams’ leader would feel better today, it was also a chance for Michael Schwarzmann to compete in a possible bunch sprint.
Starting the stage with a first slight downhill section, the race was very fast from the beginning. It took just a few kilometers before the first break formed and 5 riders went away from the peloton. While Team Sky was setting a steady pace in the bunch, the breakaway had built an advantage of more than 6 minutes, entering the feed zone halfway through the stage.
But when the sprinter teams decided to not let the stage win go away that easy, the gap started to come down gradually. On the top of the only climb of the day, with 66k to go, the distance was already reduced to under 4 minutes. It took another 50 kilometers before all escapees had been reeled back in, but then everything was set for a bunch sprint in Tarragona.
As all lead-out trains started to form, also BORA – hansgrohe moved up with their sprinter Michael Schwarzmann. It was key to be in front early enough due to the technical final, and the team did an excellent job to ride at the head of the bunch with 3k to go. But in the last roundabout Michael lost his promising position in a frantic sprint preparation. In the end, he crossed the line in 12th place, while M. Trentin won the second stage for Quickstep.
For Rafal Majka it was another punishing day in the saddle. Still suffering from stomach problems, the BORA – hansgrohe leader was hardly able to eat during the stage. He kept on fighting like yesterday, but was dropped from the bunch on the last 5k with empty legs.
“Already yesterday I suffered from bad stomach problems. Today again I couldn’t eat during the stage. I have no energy in my legs and every single kilometer is painful. We hope it will get better soon, but first I have to survive tomorrow, which will be tough. Then we will see how I can recover. The GC is done for me, but the Vuelta is not over yet.” – Rafal Majka
“It’s a pity. Rafal was prepared really well for this Vuelta, but he is suffering the same stomach problems as Michael Kolar did, and as well Pawel does. It seems to be some virus. There is not a lot we can do but give them the best medical support and wait. Michael is already feeling better at home, so we hope Rafal and Pawel can fight through this. But we know how hard it is to come through such problems during a grand tour and how painful it is for them out in the saddle. We all have great respect for that and support them as good as we can as a team.” – Steffen Radochla, Sports Director
