Latest news with #TourofAlgarve
The Guardian
19-02-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Tour of Algarve's opening stage is scrapped after peloton goes wrong way
The opening stage of the Tour of Algarve ended in chaos on Wednesday when most of the peloton took the wrong road just before the finish, and race organisers later cancelled the results. When the riders came through a roundabout just before the home straight, the lead car went the wrong side of the barriers and the majority of the bunch followed suit, leaving the crowd bewildered as they watched two races unfurl. The mix-up left Italy's Filippo Ganna with an easier than expected sprint finish and the Ineos Grenadiers rider raised his arms in celebration well before he crossed the line. His joy was short-lived, however. No winner's ceremony took place, the podium in Lagos was left empty and the 192.2km ride from Portimão was all in vain. 'On the approach to the finish line in Lagos, the peloton became divided and a large number of the riders took the wrong route, followed the detour of the support cars and missed the finish line,' race organisers said in a statement. 'The College of Commissaires interpreted the regulations and, given what happened, decided to cancel the stage because they considered that sporting truth did not prevail in the end,' race director Sergio Sousa said. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion The peloton will set off for Thursday's second stage with the clock reset to zero.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Algarve fiasco as cyclists exit roundabout wrong way
Roundabouts can be tricky, especially in cycling events when there is a lot of street furniture to avoid, but the cyclists usually manage to find the right exit. Not so at the Tour of Algarve where the first stage has been annulled after the majority of the peloton followed a motorbike carrying a TV cameraman, and found themselves on the wrong side of the barriers, sharing the road with spectators. Back at the roundabout a few knew where they should be heading, and Italy's Filippo Ganna sprinted clear of a rather small pack to claim a much-needed win for the under-pressure INEOS team. Or so he thought. But he wasn't alone. Journalists interviewed as the winner, Olympic silver medallist Wout van Aert came over to congratulate him, and he was sent to doping control. It was clear, however, that something had gone wrong, not that the Italian thought this was his problem. "I took the right route, and I won. Nothing more to say," said Gana. He then told Eurosport, "I know that everyone took the wrong route, and I took the right one. "You need to know the rules, and you need to know the course. In the past, I took the wrong route during the time trial, and because of that, I lost the race. Now it's different, and I win." Riders go the WRONG way and Ganna takes the win on the opening stage of the Volta Algarve! 😮 — Eurosport (@eurosport) February 19, 2025 Unfortunately not. No winner's ceremony took place, the podium was left empty and the 192.2km ride from Portimao was all in vain. "On the approach to the finish line in Lagos, the peloton became divided and a large number of the riders took the wrong route, followed the detour of the support cars and missed the finish line," race organisers said in a statement. "The College of Commissaires interpreted the regulations and, given what happened, decided to cancel the stage because they considered that sporting truth did not prevail in the end. "It was a wrong decision by the peloton but it's clear that we didn't do enough to avoid this outcome, which we very much regret," explained Sergio Sousa, race director. None of the leading Australian riders are in the race, but several big names besides Van Aert include Jonas Vingegaard, Geraint Thomas, Primoz Roglic and Julian Alaphilippe. The peloton will set off for Thursday's second stage with the clock reset to zero.
Reuters
19-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Tour of Algarve stage one ends in chaos as peloton goes wrong way
Feb 19 (Reuters) - The opening stage of the Tour of Algarve ended in chaos on Wednesday when most of the peloton took the wrong road just before the finish, and race organisers later cancelled the results. When the riders came through a roundabout just before the home straight, the lead car went the wrong side of the barriers and the majority of the bunch followed suit, leaving the crowd bewildered as they watched two races unfurl. The mix-up left Italy's Filippo Ganna with an easier than expected sprint finish and the Ineos Grenadiers rider raised his arms in celebration well before he crossed the line. His joy was short-lived, however. No winner's ceremony took place, the podium in Lagos was left empty and the 192.2km ride from Portimao was all in vain. "On the approach to the finish line in Lagos, the peloton became divided and a large number of the riders took the wrong route, followed the detour of the support cars and missed the finish line," race organisers said in a statement. "The College of Commissaires interpreted the regulations and, given what happened, decided to cancel the stage because they considered that sporting truth did not prevail in the end," race director Sergio Sousa said. The peloton will set off for Thursday's second stage with the clock reset to zero.
