Roglic takes the red leader’s jersey

Primoz Roglic claimed the red leader’s jersey after winning the sprint to the finish on the steep finale of yesterday’s fourth stage of the Vuelta a España.

Roglic, a three-time Vuelta winner, surged to the front in the final five metres to leave behind Lennert van Eetvelt, who appeared to have raised his arms in premature celebration.

The Slovenian has moved to the top of the standings and is eight seconds ahead of Joao Almedia, who finished the stage in third place. Enric Mas was fourth in the stage and is third overall, 32 seconds behind Roglic.

“The stage win wasn’t really my main goal today, but after seeing my teammates riding so hard in this heat, I’m happy to have finished,” said Roglic, who acknowledged that it was a tough and demanding climb and that he hopes it won’t harm him in the coming days.

“The idea is the same, to keep working day after day. I always say: you never know when your last victory will be, so you have to enjoy it. That’s life, there are always new challenges, and I’m very happy, especially with the way the team was working.”

Wout van Aert gave up the red jersey he held for two days after the gruelling first mountain stage of the three-week race. Van Aert finished several minutes behind after the 170.5-kilometre route from Plasencia to Pico Villuercas.

The cyclists had to contend with gradients of up to 20% in the final kilometres and a group of around seven sprinted to the finish.

Mikel Landa made the first move, but Van Eetvelt quickly caught up. Van Eetvelt headed into the final corner believing he had won.

Today’s fifth stage suits the experienced sprinters better with a mostly flat 177-kilometer route to Seville.—AP

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