
Back to news and opinion index page for links to archived stories | Commentary | Our YouTube page
2024 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia
If you think nobody cares about you, try missing a couple of payments. - Steven Wright
Marcus Aurelius' Meditations is available in both Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.
Current racing:
Upcoming racing:
Latest completed racing:
We posted the race organizer's report with the results.
Here's the report from stage winner Marc Soler's UAE Team Emirates-XRG:
Marc Soler demonstrated his class and timing in a strong solo performance to win Stage 14 of La Vuelta a España, securing UAE Team Emirates–XRG’s seventh stage victory of the race and his fourth personal Grand Tour stage win.
Marc Soler wins Vuelta stage 14.
The Spaniard powered clear from a large breakaway on the foothills of the final climb, distancing his final rival just under 16 km from the summit, before maintaining his lead into La Farrapona’s demanding finish. Behind him, Jonas Vingegaard managed to outsprint João Almeida for second place, each crossing the line 39 seconds behind Soler, in their ongoing duel for the red jersey.
The team’s tactical playbook unfolded well with Soler well-positioned in the early break, and as the finale approached, the remainder of UAE Team Emirates–XRG controlled the peloton pace—allowing Soler to stay out front and execute his move with finesse. He would later dedicate the win to his wife, who was celebrating her birthday.
Soler: “I’m really happy to take another win for the team. I was covering the big moves and followed Campenaerts when he attacked to enter the break and from that I made a move in the valley before the last climb to go clear. I then kept my pace on the climb, I was waiting for instructions from behind if João went clear and I needed to drop back but in the end I had the green light to push on and I’m pleased to take the stage. Happy birthday to my wife, this one is for her.”
Here's the Vuelta a España report from GC leader Jonas Vingegaard's Team Visma | Lease a Bike:
Jonas Vingegaard finished second in stage fourteen of the Vuelta a España. The Danish race leader had no trouble fending off attacks on the final climb and even managed to pick up a few bonus seconds in the sprint.
Once again, the peloton faced a brutal day in the high mountains, with no less than 4,000 metres of climbing between Avilés and the summit finish at La Farrapona. Victor Campenaerts slipped into the day’s large breakaway, but on the first ascent he wisely decided to ease off and save his strength.
The escapees built up a lead of nearly six minutes, which proved enough for Marc Soler to claim the stage win. Just behind the Spaniard, the GC contenders went head-to-head in the closing kilometres. Vingegaard stood his ground, staying calm under pressure and responding sharply to a few probing attacks. He went on to sprint to second place, securing six bonus seconds and stretching his lead slightly over nearest rival João Almeida.

Jonas Vingegaard (shown at the end of stage 13) remains the owner of the GC leader's red jersey. Sirotti photo
“I’m satisfied with how today went”, Vingegaard said afterwards. “As a team we handled the stage well. I’m happy I could grab some bonus seconds at the end. I waited for my moment, and it worked out perfectly. We put a lot of intensity into yesterday’s stage, so it’s good that today we were able to save the legs a little.”
The Dane elaborated further: “We pick our days when we want to go all-in for the stage victory. Yesterday was one of those days. João was stronger then, and he was the deserved winner. But overall we’re very pleased with how this Vuelta is going. We already have two stage wins, and things look good in the GC. Tomorrow we’ll need to stay sharp one more time before we can enjoy the rest day”, the race leader concluded.
We posted the report from stage winner Remco Evenepoel's Team Soudal Quck-Step with the results.
Here's the report from Team Israel-Premier Tech:
How to celebrate the first Welsh stage of this year’s Lloyds Tour of Britain? For Fin Tarling, the occasion called for a day in the breakaway over notoriously undulating terrain.
The 18-year-old was part of the nine-man group that broke clear early on in the Queen Stage before being caught on the first ascent of The Tumble, one of the most popular climbs for cyclists in South Wales. Teammate Joe Blackmore’s hopes of ending the race strongly saw him place 13th, on the same time as Remco Evenepoel, to move up to 12th on GC.

Remco Evenepoel wins Tour of Britain stage five. Getty Sport photo
“Really good day in the break,” says Tarling. “Crazy fans, and I kind of forgot about the pain for a while after I got into the excitement of it all.
“This was the stage that I wanted to get in the breakaway for. Tim [Elverson, IPT Academy Manager] and talked about it, and that there’d be a bit of freedom if it was the right thing for the team. I picked the right moment and, thankfully, the group ended up going clear.
“Once my job was done, I could relax and ride The Tumble at my own pace. I saw some old friends and my family at the top. It’s my mum’s birthday, so that was really special.”
Tarling has never previously competed in a UCI ProSeries event, and the longest race he’s finished at professional level was April’s Giro d’Abruzzo, which comprises just four days. Today was the fifth of his home tour, which culminates in the Welsh capital of Cardiff.
He adds: “I think I’m coping with the step up, I think it’s gone pretty smoothly so far. Learning every day is the main thing, but I think from day one, I’ve felt pretty confident moving about the peloton, and the legs have been good so far.”
And here's the Tour of Britain report from Team INEOS Grenadiers:
AJ August and Thymen Arensman battled it out on The Tumble climb as the INEOS Grenadiers took on the penultimate stage at the Tour of Britain.
On a route lined by incredible fans the team hit the front on the approach to two ascents of the tough Welsh climb.
Geraint Thomas got through a lot of work alongside Ben Swift before Sam Watson and Lucas Hamilton took it up on the lower slopes of the final climb.
Arensman hit out and accelerated to kick off the attacks with 3.3km to go, before August put in a pair of accelerations in a bid to thin out the group. A final dig with 700 metres to go brought no joy for the young American, who was still able to finish on the back of a select GC group in 14th. Arensman finished two places further back, with August now 14th overall and the Dutchman in 18th with one stage remaining.

Geraint Thomas has one more stage to ride as a professional racer. Here he is at the start of stage 6 of the 2025 Tour de France. Sirotti photo
The final day looks set to be an emotional one, with Thomas’ final stage as a pro concluding in his home city of Cardiff.
Back to news and opinion index page for links to archived stories | Commentary