Sprinting and mountains on the return of the Spanish calendar
The one-day version of the Vuelta a Castilla y León and the Ordiziako Klasikoa offer opportunities for completely opposite cyclists, with a likely mass finish in Valladolid and a stage for the climbers to shine in Guipúzkoa. Team Polti Kometa will share a block in both races.
July is coming to an end, a month that has been used to prepare for the second part of the season in Bormio. A concentration that began to show results on Giro dell Appennino and will continue to do it in the almost 200 kilometres of route between Valladolid and La Cistiérniga that the Vuelta a Castilla y León presents, reduced to one day on Tuesday, July 23. It will cover the Ribera del Duero, with special attention to the intensity and direction of the wind, but the probable outcome will be a massive sprint.
The Ordiziako Klasika will be held on Thursday 25 July. The Basque race maintains its essence with its epicentre in the town of Ordizia, and the ascents to Abaltzisketa five times. The last two, the hard hilly climb of Altzo will be added to make the selection even more selective and cause a finish with a victory only within the reach of climbers after completing 165 kilometres.
Team Polti Kometa will have a balanced and complete squad at the start line of both competitions, which will look for their chances separately in each of them. The speed of Manuel Peñalver will be the reference in the sprint in the Vuelta a Castilla y León, with the participation (and return) of David Martín, after recovering from his injury. The support work of Davide De Cassan and even Jhonatan Restrepo will be important, looking for the best position for the finish. Meanwhile, in Ordizia, the young climbers Fernando Tercero, recovering sensations after a long break due to a virus, together with Álex Martín and again Jhonatan Restrepo himself, will be looking for the leading role in the competition. As road captain, and surely active in defending the interests of the team, Diego Sevilla will lead Team Polti Kometa on the road.
Jesús Hernández, sports director: ‘They are very different races, in Castilla y León there will be wind with a sprint finish. We trust in Peñalver to get the best possible result. Meanwhile in Ordizia, the circuit of the last few editions will be repeated, with a tougher final two laps. The strongest teams accelerate as the kilometres go by and where the hardness and the high level force us to think about playing a leading role with breakaways or with moves from far away’.
