Jumbo-Visma started the Vuelta a Espana in the manner they finished Le Tour… on the winners podium! The Spanish grand tour kicked off with team time trial in Utrecht and the Dutch favourites were smooth, synchronous and, crucially, swifter over the 23.4km flat parcours, finishing 13 seconds ahead of INEOS Grenadiers with Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl a further second behind. First Jumbo Bee over the line was veteran Robert Gesink, who will wear the rojo jersey on home roads tomorrow.
I LOVE a team time trial and it’s been so long since we have one at a Grand Tour – at least 30 riders on the start line had never ridden one in their professional careers.
A team time trial in a Grand Tour hasn't happened for 3 years. I like them (I think), but I think they can be more interesting when they're Stage 4 or 5 rather than the first stage where there is far less going on with the GC which can make it more interesting.
— Cillian Kelly (@irishpeloton) August 18, 2022
I understand why this is. The inequality of access to the tech that is so often the key to success. The huge loss of time that can ruin a GC contender’s chance before the race has even started.
Love me a team time trial and great to see one back in a Grand Tour. Fully appreciate the debate on how they potentially skew the race but just love them pic.twitter.com/pNRy25r727
— Ian Street 💙 (@ianstreet67) August 19, 2022
I know it’s not for everyone
Hard to think of anything less appealing to watch than a time trial. But a team time trial takes it. And a team time trial on a Friday night? 😩 #LaVuelta22
— Daniel Ostanek (@LVCKV) August 19, 2022
However, there is something beautiful, almost moving, about a line of riders moving through a trial against the clock.
The effort at the front, the swing off, the move back into line. It is not about individual effort against a ticking second hand, it is about balancing of eight riders individual efforts to achieve perfection. No one going too fast or too slow, it is a show of team togetherness on a par with the smooth operation of sprint train. Have a look at the last kilometre with the winning team.
⏪Etapa 1⃣ – Stage 1⃣ | #LaVuelta22
🇪🇸 Siente la emoción del último kilómetros gracias a @CarrefourES
🇬🇧 Rewatch the last km. of @JumboVismaRoad's victory thanks to @CarrefourES#CarrefourConLaVuelta pic.twitter.com/xQoprXp74l
— La Vuelta (@lavuelta) August 19, 2022
Wow, Jumbo-Visma blow the other teams out of the water. #LaVuelta22
— Sadhbh O'Shea (@SadhbhOS) August 19, 2022
Gesink in red
Jumbo-Visma have 3-time Vuelta champion Primoz Roglic on the squad, but I love that the man given the honour of crossing the line first was Dutch veteran Robert Gesink.
Can Gesink please cross the line first?
Would be a great moment for Dutch cycling #teamGesink
— José Been (@TourDeJose) August 19, 2022
The man has ridden on many iterations of this team and thoroughly deserves this moment. It’s not always possible to engineer but I’m happy it worked out this time.
17 seasons at Jumbo in their various guises 🐝
1 Red Jersey 🔴
Really nice moment for Robert Gesink 🙌#LaVuelta22 pic.twitter.com/WECqGqt0dO— Dan Deakins (@DanDeakins) August 19, 2022
Great result! Gesink was one of the guys I thought about when Jonas won. He was there in 2020 on Planche de Belle Filles. His role in the journey back ended in 2021 on stage 3 when he sat down on a low wall with a broken collarbone. I'm glad that moment wasn't his last.
— Lord Copper (@BoxBender) August 19, 2022
🇪🇸 #LaVuelta22
Red man walking. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/U20FbCJ4GH
— Team Jumbo-Visma cycling (@JumboVismaRoad) August 19, 2022
I can’t really believe it, I’m really grateful to the boys. They were crazy strong and I’m very grateful to be in red. It’s definitely one of the highlights of my career. We heard some intermediate times and they were fast, but we still had to make it to the end and anything can happen in a team time trial. But I knew this team had the possibility to win for sure because there were so many strong guys in the group. Obviously, usually my job is to help the team and to help Primož and I think this was a really nice way for them to say thank you for the work of the last years. Riding in the red jersey in the Netherlands tomorrow will be a dream come true.
Team bus happiness review
Obviously, the yellow and black Jumbo Bus will be buzzing. They claimed all the jerseys except the best young rider which went to Ethan Hayter (INEOS-Grenadiers). Roglic is sitting pretty with seconds in hand on all his rivals. INEOS brought 4 Grand Tour debutantes and only lost 13 seconds, Richard Carapaz (INEOS Grenadiers) had to be happy with that. He may be slightly less happy when he looks at the team he will join next year – the EF pinkies had a shocker with Hugh Carthy and Rigoberto Uran already down +1:19.
Possibly Cyclings hardest discipline… Team Time Trial. This year #lavuelta will start with 23.3-km TTT around the Dutch city of Utrecht.
“Being together in the TT bars at that speed is scary. You can’t touch the brakes." – @estecharu https://t.co/7pPc1rqCov pic.twitter.com/ziPCJW1hoJ
— EF Pro Cycling (@EFprocycling) August 18, 2022
BikeExchange-Jayco, UAE Team Emirates and Groupama-FDJ will be satisfied to be within 40seconds of the lead.
With 16 of the other 22 teams finished, the boys remain in provisional 1st and the hotseat 🪑
It's a waiting game 🕰️👀#LaVuelta22 pic.twitter.com/MtD4qKK9la
— Team BikeExchange-Jayco (@GreenEDGEteam) August 19, 2022
Après quelques minutes passées sur les Hot Seats, nous cédons le meilleur temps provisoire. Treize équipes doivent encore franchir la ligne d'arrivée. pic.twitter.com/ICYAq0LQQF
— Équipe Cycliste Groupama-FDJ (@GroupamaFDJ) August 19, 2022
With no outright GC contenders on their team (and no, I will not consider Remco Evenepoel as one despite his huge talent), the Quicksteppers will feel aggrieved to not top the podium, and particularly to miss out on the second step by less than a second.
Quickstep 1 second SLOWER than Ineos! WOW – I didn´t expect that… #Vuelta2022 pic.twitter.com/j04kwIR2VV
— Cycling_Eve (@CyclingEve) August 19, 2022
Quickstep's TTT form is simply horrendous, there's so much hips movement I feel like I'm watching Shakira #LaVuelta22
— Guillaume (@GuillaumeWatt) August 19, 2022
Someone tell Remco to slow down pic.twitter.com/ZFU0bZw9sn
— janina (@jeanine______) August 19, 2022
I think someone forgot to tell Remco to wait for his teammates in the finish 😅 still, a great time. #LaVuelta22
— Sadhbh O'Shea (@SadhbhOS) August 19, 2022
Things that made me smile
LouLou back at the races
One of those rare occasions when @alafpolak1 wears the Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl kit 😁#LaVuelta22
Photo: @BeelWout pic.twitter.com/W7fzWwdmrm
— Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team (@qst_alphavinyl) August 19, 2022
The purple skinsuits of BurgosBH and their super fans
Empieza la acción en @lavuelta, el super fan del @BurgosBH apoyando a papá. Vamos @JetseBol #LaVuelta22 pic.twitter.com/ixUSxJwBSS
— Nancy Arreola (@Nancy_Arreola) August 19, 2022
The Hot Mess Map from Belinda
VUELTA A ESPANA HOT MESS MAP 2022 Edition
Your non-pro guide to the wild ride that is La Vuelta. Stage-by-stage details, hot tips, & highly accurate facts. #GTHotMessMaps #HotMessMaps #CouchPeloton #LaVuelta22 #LaVuelta pic.twitter.com/vwsvCjv0pE
— Belinda (@reallyspoketome) August 19, 2022
Any ideas?
Isn't he gorgeous. Dude has a manbun but I mainly want him for his pale movable body (like @ButteredFrog 🤭) Do you think he resembles any cyclists #couchpeloton pic.twitter.com/2cuaD63OoX
— MrsFrog (@musettedutour) August 19, 2022
Last word
The Vuelta has a strong podium plushie game
Results
Stage 1 results
1 Jumbo-Visma 24:40
2 INEOS Grenadiers +0:13
3 Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl +0:14
4 BikeExchange-Jayco +0:31
5 UAE Team Emirates +0:33
GC Top 10
1 Robert Gesink (Jumbo-Visma) 0:24:40
2 Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) same time
3 Chris Harper (Jumbo-Visma) s.t
4 Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) s.t
5 Rohan Dennis (Jumbo-Visma) s.t
6 Edoardo Affini (Jumbo-Visma) s.t
7 Sam Oomen (Jumbo-Visma) s.t
8 Mike Teunissen )Jumbo-Visma) s.t
9 Ethan Hayter (INEOS Grenadiers) +0:13
10 Richard Carapaz (INEOS Grenadiers) s.t
All the Jerseys
Leader’s jersey : Robert Gesink (Jumbo-Visma)
Points jersey : Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma)
King of the Mountains jersey : Chris Harper (Jumbo-Visma)
Young Rider Jersey : Ethan Hayter (INEOS Grenadiers)
Team competition : Jumbo-Visma
For the full stage review, go to cyclingnews
Go here for the official La Vuelta website