SPANIARD ALBERTO CONTADOR claimed his second Vuelta a Espana crown in Madrid yesterday.
With the final stage known as a gentlemen’s stage — with the top 10 in the general classification to remain in order — all Contador had to do was turn up to celebrate his fifth Grand Tour title.
The Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank rider returned to competitive action from a doping ban for the Vuelta, and won the three-week long race ahead of compatriots Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) and Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha).
German John Degenkolb (Argos-Shimano) won the final stage of the race but the day belonged to a delighted Contador.
“Because of what happened coming in, this victory is very special for me and I have to thank everyone who helped me because I came in without having competed for a long time and things were complicated,” Contador said. ”Reflecting on it, there are a lot of emotions that are very strong and that can’t be explained with words. It’s a big weight off of me.
“This is the result of many months of hard work and an incredible level of self-sacrifice. I feel a real sense of release from pressure, liberated by this win. I want to dedicate it to the people who have been with me in the good times and the bad times.”
Contador was 76 seconds ahead of Valverde and 93 ahead of Rodriguez while Brit Chris Froome (Team Sky) finished in fourth, over 10 minutes off the pace. Another Spaniard, Daniel Moreno Fernandez (Katusha) rounded out the top five for the general classification.
Degenkolb ended the race on a high as he edged Italian Elia Viviani (Liquigas-Cannondale) at the end of the 115km stage from Cercedilla to Madrid.
The stage win was Degenkolb’s fifth of the race and he can be pleased with his efforts.
Valverde (199 points) took out the points classification for sprints ahead of Rodriguez (193) and Contador (161) while Australian Simon Clarke (Orica-GreenEdge) won the king of the mountains jersey and Movistar topped the timesheets in the teams classification.
