Bilbao (EFE).- The British Adam Yates won the first stage of the Tour de France and became the first leader of the event after beating his brother Simon at the finish line along with the one who escaped in the descent of the Pike, the last port of the day with departure starting in Bilbao.
The UAE team cyclist had more strength in the final stretch of the stage and achieved his first individual victory in the gala round and prevailed a few meters ahead of his brother, who already had two, with about 20 seconds ahead of the led peloton by the Slovenian Tadej Pogacar, who entered with his arms raised for the victory of his teammate.
Yates, seen by the UAE as a backup leader if Pogacar has no legs, helped their leader climb Pike and then found the strength to leave with his brother Simon.
Both collaborated to maintain twenty seconds with respect to the group of favorites.
The stage was marked by a fall with about 20 kilometers to go in which the Spanish Enric Mas was involved, who had to abandon, and the Ecuadorian Richard Carapaz, who was able to continue but lost many minutes.
The Spanish Enric Mas (Movistar) has abandoned the Tour de France after suffering a hard fall with 24 km to go in the first stage of the Tour de France that starts and ends in Bilbao.
Mas suffered the mishap along with the Ecuadorian Richard Carapaz, who continues in the race injured.
Carapaz also suffered a fall with about 20 kilometers to go before the finish line of the first stage of the Tour de France, starting and finishing in Bilbao, and spent several minutes on the asphalt before getting back on the bike visibly sore.
The leader of the EF team, third in 2021, fell on the descent of the Vivero pass, the penultimate mountainous difficulty of the day, in which the Spanish Enric Mas was also involved, who could not continue.
The Ecuadorian, after several minutes on the asphalt, got up limping and although he got back on the bike, he lost many minutes compared to the peloton.
Urkullu: The start of the Tour from Bilbao “is a dream that comes true”
The Lehendakari, Iñigo Urkullu, assured that the start of the Tour de France from Bilbao, which he presided over this Saturday on the esplanade of the San Mamés stadium, “is a dream that comes true.”
“It is said in a topical way but it is so. We have fought for many years for the start of the Tour to be here, in Euskadi, particularly in Bilbao. They have managed to get it to be here and it is an incomparable spectacle”, Urkullu pointed out in statements to EFE.
The lehendakari is also overwhelmed by a “feeling of pride for the ability to organize a great start on the Tour, for projecting the world as we really are, as we should not have been projected in the past unfortunately.”
“However, on this occasion -he continued- I think the world can see perfectly what the Basque Country is, a town that also knows how to project itself internationally from what sport is, a sport that, like cycling, is so deeply rooted in the Basque Country”.