Stefan Küng won the 21st stage of the Vuelta a España with a commanding performance. The Swiss rider from Groupama-FDJ was much faster than the rest in the time trial around Madrid. Primoz Roglic finished second, thus securing his fourth red jersey by the end. Ben O'Connor rode an excellent time trial and finished the Vuelta in second place, while Enric Mas joined him on the podium as the third-place finisher in this round.
So no sprint finish in Madrid, but instead an individual time trial of 24.6 kilometers for the powerhouses. Although the Spanish capital is relatively high—at least for a major city—the riders faced a mostly flat course. They started one by one at Distrito Teléfonica, the company that owns Movistar among other brands. This was in honor of the company's hundredth anniversary, which provided extra motivation for Enric Mas and his team.
The start of the time trial included some technical sections, but it was mostly straightforward to the finish. Near the end of the time trial, the riders passed the Prado Museum, with the finish line ultimately drawn on Gran Via. A time trial for the specialists, but how were their legs after three weeks of grueling racing? The two top favorites from the opening day were missing, as both Joshua Tarling (INEOS Grenadiers) and Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike) were involved in crashes.
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Affini quickly outperformed by Campenaerts, Baroncini, and Küng
Without the two big names, the search was on for specialists who had a great opportunity to shine. Edoardo Affini thought he had a chance, but the Italian opted for deep wheels (like Van Aert at the Olympics), and it backfired like a boomerang. Affini's best time was soon surpassed by Victor Campenaerts, before the Belgian was again beaten by Mauro Schmid and Filippo Baroncini.
The real top time—such as those always present in a time trial—came from Küng. The Swiss rider from Groupama-FDJ outclassed the rest, finishing more than forty seconds ahead of Baroncini. Mattia Cattaneo settled in between, taking second place for Soudal-Quick Step, before the focus could shift to the GC contenders from the top ten.
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O'Connor silences Mas and Carapaz, Roglic remains untroubled
Carlos Rodriguez was the first INEOS Grenadiers rider to start. The Spaniard clearly didn’t have his best legs anymore and was already behind at the first checkpoint. Only fifth-placed David Gaudu and eighth-placed Mikel Landa performed worse. The other GC contenders were close to each other, with Ben O'Connor standing out as performing excellently. The Australian, who had spent two weeks in the red jersey and suffered in the mountains, silenced Enric Mas and Richard Carapaz in the fight for second place. At the first checkpoint, only Roglic performed better, being thirteen seconds behind Küng.
The standings remained the same at the second checkpoint. While Mas and Carapaz lost some time and Rodriguez found some extra strength, O'Connor and Roglic came through as sixth and fifth at the second checkpoint. The battle for the podium was thus decided, and in the fight for the top five, Mattias Skjelmose moved ahead of Gaudu. Carapaz defended his fourth place, and Roglic finished at a respectful distance from Küng. The day’s victory went to the Swiss rider, while Roglic secured his fourth overall win in the Vuelta for Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe!
Results stage 21 Vuelta a España 2024
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