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Vingegaard smoothly survives dangerous finish of second stage Itzulia Basque Country

Vingegaard smoothly survives dangerous finish of second stage Itzulia Basque Country

Team Jumbo-Visma has come through the second stage of the Itzulia Basque Country well. His teammates put Jonas Vingegaard in a good position for the dangerous final kilometres, and he maintained his place in the top of the general classification.

Tuesday saw the riders prepare for the longest stage of the six-day race. Six escapees quickly gained several minutes on the peloton. This group was caught early, and all eyes were on the treacherous last kilometres, which included a perilous descent to the finish line following an eleven-kilometre climb. Sam Oomen successfully positioned leader Vingegaard at the front of the thinned peloton, and he smoothly ended up in the front group.

"We anticipated that the descent would decide today's final. We focused on it beforehand. Our main goal today was getting Jonas to the finish safely", sports director Frans Maassen said after his riders had crossed the line. Vingegaard was among the first riders to hit the descent and managed to retain fifth place in the overall standings.

"I'm not a fan of a finish that risky, fortunately everything went well"

Ploegleider Frans Maassen

"I think our plan worked pretty well today. Jonas knew what to expect and went full-speed downhill like everyone else. We had already warned him that it would be super dangerous. I am happy that everything went well", Maassen said with relief. "I'm not a fan of a finish that risky. Fortunately, it wasn't wet, and we suffered no damage."

Tomorrow's stage was already on the sports director's mind. "This ride will be decisive. It's one of the toughest stages of the week. The route is very technical, with lots of narrow roads and descents. But we are well prepared and ready to fight again."

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