Diego Pablo Sevilla, first KOM leader at the Vuelta a Burgos
Diego Pablo Sevilla has won the mountains jersey in the first stage of the Vuelta a Burgos, after being part of the breakaway and crossing two of the climbs in first position. In a day that ended in a sprint, Team Polti Kometa had no surprises and will seek to defend both the lead in the mountains and its options of protagonism in the remaining four days.
It was a hot but brave day for Diego Sevilla, who infiltrated a breakaway of three riders that also included Mintegi (Euskatel) and Álvarez (Burgos BH). It was the latter who scored the most points on the first ascent to the Alto del Arroyo, although just 15 kilometres later Diego took the virtual lead on the ascent to the Alto de Manquillo (2nd category), after passing in the lead.
There were still 130 relatively favourable kilometres to go, with a sunny day, and although the three riders in the lead got on perfectly, the gap never exceeded 3 minutes. The work of the teams of the sprinters prevented the breakaway from dreaming, but they did fight for the last of the punctuated climbs, Aguilón, where Diego Sevilla won again, accumulating 20 points in the mountains and securing the red jersey as the best climber on the podium for the day.
The peloton was very close with less than 20 kilometres to go, so the breakaway trio was neutralised even before the intermediate sprint. A lot of speed, a lot of pace at the entrance to the streets of Burgos and the victory went to Bittner (DSM), with the Polti Kometa riders saving the day in that fast finish.
Diego Pablo Sevilla: “In the first stage in Burgos there’s not usually much of a fight for the breakaway, so the objective was to be at the front. There was a break of three riders and we had the chance to fight for the mountains jersey. On the first hill, Burgos rider beat me by very little, on the same line. I managed to win the second climb, and on the last one I won more comfortably. We took the jersey on the first day and we’re going to try to defend it. I’m happy because it’s a very good way to start the race”.
Jesús Hernández, sport director: “It was a strange day, testing without radios, although it didn’t turn out to be a big problem. We were looking for the mountains jersey, I’m satisfied that I was able to get it on a day that didn’t require a big effort, and it allowed us to be on the podium. Restrepo was also in the lead at the end, although it wasn’t a sprint for him. The important thing is that there were no crashes or problems and we have all our hopes of continuing to do well in the race”.
Tomorrow, the second stage of the Vuelta a Burgos will take place between Villasana de Mena and Ojo Guareña. In total, 161 kilometres of route with a demanding finish in which the strong riders will have their chance or a breakaway that can open the way in the final part. Diego Sevilla will also be fighting to defend the mountains jersey, with six categorized climbs in the Merindades in the province of Burgos.
