{"id":193845,"date":"2023-09-01T15:28:16","date_gmt":"2023-09-01T15:28:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?p=193845"},"modified":"2023-09-01T15:28:16","modified_gmt":"2023-09-01T15:28:16","slug":"kaden-groves-has-big-lead-in-race-for-vueltas-skoda-green-jersey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2023\/09\/01\/kaden-groves-has-big-lead-in-race-for-vueltas-skoda-green-jersey\/","title":{"rendered":"Kaden Groves Has Big Lead in Race for Vuelta\u2019s \u0160koda Green Jersey"},"content":{"rendered":"

Although there are fewer top-ranked sprinters in this year\u2019s Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a than there are fleas on a bowling ball, the two bunch sprints the race has so far served up (as of August 31) were pretty tasty. And what little form there is in the race has dominated, with Alpecin-Deceuninck\u2019s Kaden Groves leading by a large margin in the race for the \u0160koda Green Jersey.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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But it hasn\u2019t been as easy as Groves might have anticipated after the only other top-20-ranked sprinter in the Vuelta, Bryan Coquard (Cofidis), abandoned the race after crashing on successive stages and fracturing a shoulder blade \u2013 before he had a chance to compete in a single bunch sprint. After easily taking a rather shambolic sprint on the rather lumpy stage 4, he was nearly ambushed on stage 5 by an unexpected rival, the ultra-rapid Ineos Grenadiers ITT specialist and world track champion Filippo Ganna.<\/p>\n

Ganna was apparently given permission by the Ineos coaching staff to go for glory, rather than pursue his day job of team domestique, and he timed his sprint nearly to perfection as he was beaten to the line by a mere hair\u2019s breadth by Groves. The 27-year-old Italian is one of the great cycling all-rounders in the world. Nicknamed by Eurosport commentators as \u201cthe all-terrain vehicle,\u201d he is equally at home on the flat and in the mountains, making him an invaluable domestique.<\/p>\n

\u201cI try to do the leadout, [be the] last man [in the mountains], sprint and there\u2019s also a TT after the rest day\u201d Ganna told Rouleur<\/a> after stage 5. \u201cI can ride everywhere.\u201d Even if he doesn\u2019t like to ride everywhere. \u201cI don\u2019t like to do the sprint,\u201d he admitted. \u201cIt\u2019s too dangerous and I don\u2019t like the sensations, the pressure on the body. But if it\u2019s necessary, I do it. I prefer to take care of my GC rider but G [Geraint Thomas] said I can do a sprint, so why not? I tried to do my best to finish today. It was not easy and I did my maximum.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\ud83d\udeb4\u200d\u2642\ufe0f\ud83d\udca8 \u00bfOtra etapa para los hombres m\u00e1s r\u00e1pidos? \ud83d\udcc8\u00a1Aqu\u00ed ten\u00e9is el perfil de hoy!<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udeb4 Another fast stage on the cards \ud83d\udca8 Check out today's stage profile!#LaVuelta23<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/p0HiHfyhCX<\/a><\/p>\n

— La Vuelta (@lavuelta) September 1, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n