Opening prologue in the Volta a Portugal that served to warm up the engines and award the first yellow jersey of the 2024 edition.
On the first day, the cyclists faced a prologue of only 5.6 kilometers held in Águeda, the Capital of the bicycle, in an effort that due to the short distance, was going to be very tight and had to be done thoroughly.
Julius Johansen sets the pace
Oleksander Grigoriev (Efapel Cycling) was among the first favorite cyclists of the day to set a reference time. The 32-year-old cyclist was the first to get the time below seven minutes (00:06:57).
Grigoriev held the hot seat, where the cyclist with the best time sits, until Julius Johansen (Sabgal / Anicolor), another favorite of the day, crossed the finish line.
The winner of the GP Anicolor, where he also won the initial time trial, completed the prologue with a time nine seconds faster and secured the best time.
A second made all the difference
After holding the best time for a while, the last cyclists began to arrive.
Rafael Reis, Johansen’s teammate, clocked an impressive time and ended up beating the Danish rider’s time by just 0.86 seconds, an incredibly narrow margin that allows the Portuguese to don the yellow jersey in tomorrow’s tough stage.
Rafael Reis thus achieved his ninth stage in the Grandíssima, with Sabgal / Anicolor claiming the top two spots, with Rafael Reis and Julius Johansen. Tyler Stites (Project Echelon Racing) came in third.
Top 10 Stage and Overall Classification
Position | Cyclist | Team | Time |
1 | REIS Rafael | SABGAL/ANICOLOR | 00:06:48 |
2 | JOHANSEN Julius | SABGAL/ANICOLOR | 00:06:48 |
3 | STITES Tyler | PROJECT ECHELON RACING | 00:06:54 |
4 | FOUCHE James | EUSKALTEL-EUSKADI | 00:06:56 |
5 | GRIGOREV Aleksandr | EFAPEL CYCLING | 00:06:57 |
6 | MOREIRA Mauricio | SABGAL/ANICOLOR | 00:07:00 |
7 | SALGUEIRO Carlos | AP HOTELS & RESORTS /TAVIRA/ SC FARENSE | 00:07:02 |
8 | ANTUNES Tiago | EFAPEL CYCLING | 00:07:03 |
9 | OYARZUN Carlos | AVILUDO – LOULETANO – LOULÉ CONCELHO | 00:07:03 |
10 | ETXEBERRIA Asier | EUSKALTEL-EUSKADI | 00:07:04 |
Stage 1 Profile
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