Serrano comes close to the podium in Beasain, with Pietrobon leading in the mountains and the U23 team as the best team
94º Loinatz Proba
Beasain – Beasain (149,6 km)
The breakaway triumphed in the Loinaitz Proba in Beasain. Russian Ivanov Viatcheslav (MPGroup), who went on the attack on the last climb to Olaberria and passed the summit first, won in an edition 2022 with a good share of protagonism for the riders of the U23 team of the Contador Foundation. Javi Serrano came close to the podium, finishing fourth, and Andrea Pietrobon finished in the top ten with an eighth place that gave continuity to his performance throughout the day. The EOLO-KOMETA Cycling Team climbed to the podium this Sunday as the best team of the race.
Many attacks in the race in Gipuzkoa during its first half. Successful attempts of breakaways and time rents never excessive. The dynamic, in which Manuel Oioli was involved on behalf of the blue team, was maintained up until the second climb to Atagoiti. On the descent, a very interesting breakaway was formed, eleven riders, including Andrea Pietrobon.
The Italian rode alongside Beñat Onaindia and Joan Albert Riera (Baqué), Imanol Álvarez (Eiser), Aner Arozena (Electro Alavesa), Ángel Coterillo (Gomur), Íñigo Eizagirre (Eulen), Asier Castilla and Jon Aracama (Laboral Kutxa), Daniel Criado (Lizarte), Eder Ruiz de Balaguera (Telco’m) and Eric Fagundez (Cortizo). The group would reach 1’45” over a peloton that rode at a very lively pace to avoid getting out of control. Pietrobon would crown first Mandubia, points that catapulted him to the final leadership of the general classification of the mountains of the race, but the breakaway would finish definitively later, moment in which a leading group of about thirty units was born.
On the last climb to Olaberria, which has a very hard initial kilometre, Viatcheslav made his move. José Marín (Telco’m), eventually second, and Iker Trigo (Gomur) tried to catch his wheel, but only the Andalusian managed to do so. Behind, with the finish line so close, Serrano tried to close the gap to put his top speed into play. In the fight for the last place on the podium, he finally gave way to Íñigo González.
Javi Serrano, after the race: “It was a very, very nice race. And very hard. I think we all did a great job in the team, getting into the breakaways and working together. As for me, I felt great. I have the thorn in my side that Viatcheslav and Marín made it to the finish, because I had good legs. On the last climb five riders went away, but in the end they were the strongest and we couldn’t stay with them. Throughout the day I had a lot of help from the team, but Andrea did a special job at the end, in the last kilometres, to catch the breakaway. In the last corner I went off and I couldn’t make it back in the final sprint to third place, but one position doesn’t change much and in the end I’m happy with the feeling. I’m happy with the sensations and I hope that we can soon achieve the victory we are chasing”.
[📷 Deep thanks to Aroa Santamaría: Twitter, Facebook e Instagram]
