The Maillot Rojo
While the yellow and pink jerseys in the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia hold a secret place, in La Vuelta, the leader’s jersey, the maillot rojo, is not as highly regarded. Don’t get me wrong, it’s just as important for the riders and their teams. It’s also very much celebrated by the fans and culture surrounding the La Vuelta but the color is just a formality. It’s the spirit behind the jersey that’s actually the most important to the Spanish cycling fans.
Still, maillot rojo was introduced just 14 years ago at the 2010 La Vuelta. Before that, the leader wore all sorts of colours. At first, in 1935, the cyclist with the best time was awarded the orange jersey. Unfortunately, however, La Vuelta started at a time when Europe in general and Spain in particular weren’t quite stable. After just two years, the Spanish Civil War began. After Franco took power, he restored the cycling event in 1941 when the leader was awarded a white jersey for just one edition. After one more year, the event was stopped again due to the Second World War. It returned in 1945 with the fastest cyclist once again receiving an orange jersey. Another five years and the race took another hit. It couldn’t find sponsors.
In 1955, after 5 years without La Vuelta, the Tour of Spain returned thanks to a Basque newspaper. They followed the paved road that the Tour de France offered and renewed the GC jersey by using the famous yellow jersey. Thanks to the French, it was quite recognisable even among Spaniards, so it stayed the official GC jersey until 1999 (with one notable orange exception in 1977).
Then the jersey became gold for about 10 years until Carrefour stepped in in 2010, and thus the maillot rojo was born. And, honestly, this colour is definitely the most Spanish of them all. Now it represents more than a brand – it’s a symbol of Spanish cycling. So, hopefully, it will stick around. But, unfortunately, for now, it’s hardly surprising that the maillot rojo is not quite as popular as maglia rosa or the yellow jersey.
The Polka Dot Jersey
The Yellow Jersey, which La Vuelta used between 1955 and 1999, was not the only jersey they borrowed from the Tour de France. As a homage to the Tour de France, they also added a Polka dot jersey. The reasons were the same as in the Tour. It was easily recognizable in the less-than-ideal mountain stages. However, unlike the French dots, the Spanish ones are blue. No one really knows why they opted for a blue pattern, but the sponsor most probably has something to do with it. The King of the Mountain’s competition is sponsored by Loterías y Apuestas del Estado – the Spanish lottery. The lottery’s colors are actually blue. Thus, regardless of why the dots remained blue, the Loterías y Apuestas del Estado were happy with the design and it stuck ever since the King of the Mountain’s competition was introduced.
The Green Jersey
The Green Jersey is another symbol that pays homage to the Tour de France. Unlike the Tour, however, the Škoda Green Jersey is not always handed to the best sprinter. The points in La Vuelta are given a bit differently. The highest points are given to the stage winners – and since many stages end on summits, the King of the Mountain often wears the Green Jersey as well. The intermediate sprint brings only 4 points to the first rider and only three competitors get points. In contrast, at the finish line, the winner takes 25 points and the first 15 riders get some points.
This focuses on the overall performance rather than just short outbursts of energy. It promotes teamwork and demands a different approach by the sprinters apart from just breaking away to grab the points and then losing their lead in just a few kilometres after the last intermediate sprint.
The White Jersey
Unlike other events where the white jersey represented the best young rider, in the past, this color represented the combined leader. It was awarded to the rider who had the best position in three categories. For example, the white jersey leader could have been 3rd in the GC, 7th in the points classification, and 5th in the King of the Mountains competition. So, his score would have been 15, and as long as other riders had higher scores, the combined classification leader would retain the white jersey. This way, the focus was shifted from winning jerseys to winning stages in every aspect of the race.
Since 2019, the white jersey in La Vuelta a España has been repurposed and is now awarded to the best young rider in the race. The White Jersey is given to the highest-placed rider in the General Classification who is under the age of 26. The change aligns La Vuelta with other Grand Tours, where the White Jersey traditionally signifies the best young rider. The combined classification that the white jersey once represented has been discontinued, and the focus has returned to the traditional individual classifications.
Tei Tei
The jerseys are all interesting with their specific rules but nothing says La Vuelta quite like Tei Tei. This bull is La Vuelta’s official mascot and the epitome of the race and its spirit. It also pays homage to Spanish culture and its long-lasting tradition of bullfighting.
It also corresponds pretty well with the red jersey, as bulls are known to charge when seeing a red colour. So, we are always waiting for Tei Tei to start chasing after the red jersey. But for now, the plush bull is pretty chill. It hangs around the fans, dances, and helps the La Vuelta spread joy through merch, games or taking pictures with exhilarated fans.
Today, Tei Tei can be seen during all stages, often mingling with the crowd, dancing, and sharing merch. And who knows, maybe one day, he will chase after the red jersey.
The La Granja trophy
Finally, we have the trophy, and oh boy, did the Spaniards go all-in on that. Each year, the winner gets a glass plate produced by the renowned La Real Fábrica de Cristales de la Granja, a glass factory established in 1727 by Philip V of Spain.
The Trophy is crafted with high-quality crystal and incorporates elements of Spain, cycling, and, of course, the La Vuelta brand. These details are unique each year, so each winner gets a piece of history.
As with everything else regarding La Vuelta, this symbol is also relatively new as the first La Granja Trophy was awarded in 2008. Hopefully, however, this beautiful display of glasswork mastery will become one of La Vuelta’s cornerstone symbols.
