After so much tragedy, great joy. Among the bad news, some good news. After many falls, I move on to attacks, strategy and victory. In the midst of all that ugliness, a true beauty. Instead of looking at the ambulances, hospitals and medical reports, this time the news was on the podium. After many long faces, came the smile of two kids, a man from Alicante and a man from Granada, 21 and 23 years old, respectively, who confirmed that they are more than ready to rub shoulders with the greats of cycling. One is Juan Ayuso (UAE), who won the Itzulia in a big way, his first round of one-week stages. The other is Carlos Rodríguez (Ineos), who won the stage and climbed to second place after collaborating with the future winner on the last climb towards Eibar.
First and second. In the queen stage and in the final general. The two great Spanish promises were confirmed as a reality with a memorable performance in the decisive stage. Yes, Vingegaard, Roglic, Evenepoel and even Landa were missing. But these abandonments cannot tarnish the victory in a day of high cycling in which the man from Alicante, who was third at the start, destroyed Skjelmose, the 23-year-old leader. Without the stars, a career of exciting young people was left.
The curse of Itzulia in 2024 ended with an extraordinary sixth stage, the queen, which crowned Juan Ayuso. It was the reconciliation of a race that usually shines because of its course and that had gone out, darkened, with so many accidents and dull stages. The two Spaniards are two of those who crashed, not in the fateful Olaeta curve, where the big favorites had to abandon, but they did kiss the asphalt in the third stage, on Wednesday.
Ayuso, supported by a great team tactic with two luxury teammates like Arrieta – infiltrated from the beginning in the breakaway – and Marc Soler – who started in Krabelin, the toughest port of the seven, and became the virtual leader – , turned on the light and illuminated the race.
Twice the Alicante player from Emirates attacked and twice he took down the Dane from Lidl. First in Izua, where Carlos Rodríguez tried to follow him and couldn't. Although on the descent there was regrouping. The final climb was in Urkaregi, the last ascent of the day, 16.8 km from the finish line. He stood up, waved his hand, and left. So he did accompany Rodríguez.
They both collaborated. They were both interested. One was sentencing the race. The other, a great descender like he demonstrated in the 2023 Tour in the Joux Plane to win in Morzine, could get on the podium and stay the stage. That of Indurain and Chiapucci, but among Spaniards. That's how it went. “With me, Juan knew that he had support that was going to help him in whatever way he could. We had common interests that have turned out well,” explained the one from Almuñecar.
“How much?” Ayuso asked the motorcycle that accompanied them. With his thumb he pointed backwards, asking the difference between them and Skjelmose, with whom he had an old score pending since last year's Tour of Switzerland. And Ayuso could not help but smile when he was informed that it was more than 40 seconds with less than five kilometers left from Itzulia. He had it in his pocket.
At the finish line, Ayuso was greeted with the yellow jersey, the winner's txapela, but also his mother and his dog, Trufa. “It is incredible to win a general championship for the first time in professionals and even more so in the Basque Country. I couldn't choose a better scenario," confessed the man from Alicante, who succeeds Vingegaard in the list of winners, in a race that was once won by Bartali, Anquetil, Ocaña, Contador and Roglic.
The 10 bonus seconds awaited Rodríguez, with which he also passed Skjelmose in the classification – by a sigh –, and his first victory of 2024. “Very happy with the stage. “Juan deserves the overall because he was very strong,” he congratulated him. Between the two Spaniards they reconciled cycling with Itzulia, they blessed a race that was cursed.
