The 2014
Vuelta a España
The Vuelta a España (; ) is an annual stage race, multi-stage bicycle racing, bicycle race primarily held in Spain, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. Inspired by the success of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Ital ...
took place between 23 August and 14 September 2014 and was the 69th edition of the race.
It featured eight mountain stages, five hill stages, five flat stages, and three time trials (one team and two individual), two of which appeared at the beginning and end of the race.
Jerez de la Frontera
Jerez de la Frontera () or simply Jerez, also cited in old English-language sources as , is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the province of Cádiz in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Sp ...
, on the Spanish south coast, hosted the opening stage. The Vuelta then went counterclockwise, through the south-east and east of the country before crossing the north and finishing in
Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela, simply Santiago, or Compostela, in the province of Province of A Coruña, A Coruña, is the capital of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city ...
. This was the first time in 21 years that the race has finished outside
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
.
The race was won for the third time by Spanish rider,
Alberto Contador, of .
Contador went into the race uncertain of his form after crashing out of the
Tour on the 10th stage, breaking his tibia. However, Contador found his form in the race earlier than expected, taking the red jersey on the 10th stage
individual time trial
An individual time trial (ITT) is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock (in French: ''contre la montre'' – literally "against the watch", in Italian: ''tappa a cronometro'' "stopwatch stage"). There are also trac ...
and taking two key mountain stage wins on his way to victory. He won the race by 1' 10" over runner-up,
Chris Froome of . Like Contador, Froome also went into the race uncertain of his form after he crashed three times in two days during the Tour, leading to his withdrawal. However, Froome came to life during the third week, finishing second in three key mountain stages and taking time to move into second place overall. Spanish rider
Alejandro Valverde
Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish cyclist, who competed as a professional in road bicycle racing from 2002 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2022, and now competes in gravel cycling for the Movistar Team Gravel Squad.
During ...
of the completed the podium, finishing 40 seconds behind Froome and 1 minute and 50 seconds behind Contador. Valverde also took the sixth stage of the race going to
La Zubia, the race's first mountain stage.
In the race's other classifications,
John Degenkolb of won the green jersey for the
points classification. Degenkolb took four stage wins, the most by any rider in the race. The blue polka-dot jersey for the
mountains classification was taken by Spaniard
Luis León Sánchez of . Aside from taking the red jersey, Contador also won the white jersey for the
combination classification. He took the first place in the general classification, third place in the points classification and second place in the mountains classification. took the
team classification for accumulating the lowest time from their three best cyclists.
Teams
The 18
UCI World Tour
The UCI WorldTour is the premier men's elite road cycling tour, sitting above the UCI ProSeries and various regional UCI Continental Circuits. It refers to both the tour of 38 events and, until 2019, an annual ranking system based upon perfor ...
teams were automatically entitled to start the race; four wildcard teams were also invited.
†: Invited
UCI Pro Continental teams
Pre-race favourites
Before the start of the race, defending champion,
Chris Horner,
2014 Giro d'Italia
The 2014 Giro d'Italia was the 97th running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tour races.
The race started off in Belfast, on 9 May, with a team time trial and concluded in Trieste, on 1 June, with a flat st ...
champion
Nairo Quintana,
Joaquim Rodríguez and
Alejandro Valverde
Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish cyclist, who competed as a professional in road bicycle racing from 2002 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2022, and now competes in gravel cycling for the Movistar Team Gravel Squad.
During ...
were among the favourites for overall victory. After abandoning the
Tour de France
The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...
,
Chris Froome and
Alberto Contador announced they would compete in the Vuelta. Other possible contenders could emerge from
Wilco Kelderman,
Carlos Betancur,
Fabio Aru,
Thibaut Pinot
Thibaut Pinot (born 29 May 1990) is a French former professional road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional from 2010 to 2023, spending his entire career with . Once considered one of the most promising talents in French cycling, he finis ...
,
Ryder Hesjedal,
Rigoberto Urán,
Andrew Talansky and
Dan Martin.
The day before the Vuelta began, Chris Horner was withdrawn from the race due to low levels of
cortisol
Cortisol is a steroid hormone in the glucocorticoid class of hormones and a stress hormone. When used as medication, it is known as hydrocortisone.
Cortisol is produced in many animals, mainly by the ''zona fasciculata'' of the adrenal corte ...
. This is because Lampre Merida () are part of the
Mouvement pour un cyclisme crédible (MPCC) which forbids cyclists from racing when cortisol concentrations drop below a specified threshold. On stage 11, Nairo Quintana withdrew from the race after crashing twice in two days.
Route and stages
Classification leadership table
There were four main classifications contested in the 2014 Vuelta a España, with the most important being the
general classification. The general classification was calculated by adding each cyclist's finishing times on each stage. The cyclist with the least accumulated time was the race leader, identified by the red jersey; the winner of this classification was considered the winner of the Vuelta. In 2014, there were time bonuses given on mass-start stages; ten seconds were awarded to the stage winner, with six for second and four for third.
Additionally, there was a
points classification, which awards a green jersey. In the points classification, cyclists get points for finishing among the best in a stage finish, or in intermediate sprints. The cyclist with the most points led the classification, and is identified with a green jersey. There was also a
mountains classification. The organisation categorised some climbs as either Categoria Especial, first, second or third category; points for this classification were won by the first cyclists that reach the top of these climbs, with more points available for the higher-categorised climbs. The cyclist with the most points led the classification, and was identified with a blue polka dot jersey.
The fourth individual classification was the
combination classification, marked by the white jersey. This classification is calculated by adding the numeral ranks of each cyclist in the general, points and mountains classifications – a rider must have a score in all classifications possible to qualify for the combination classification – with the lowest cumulative total signifying the winner of this competition.
For the
team classification, the times of the best three cyclists per team on each stage were added; the leading team is the team with the lowest total time. For the
combativity award, a jury gives points after each stage to the cyclists they considered most combative. The cyclist with the most votes in all stages leads the classification. For the daily combative winner, the rider in question donned a dossard with a red background, on the following stage.
;Notes:
* In Stage 4
Danilo Wyss
Danilo Wyss (born 26 August 1985) is a Switzerland, Swiss former road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2008 and 2020 for the and . He is no relation to fellow Swiss cyclist Daniel Wyss who won the Race Across America in 2006 and ...
, who was second in the combination classification, wore the white jersey, because
Lluís Mas (in first place) wore the blue polka-dot jersey as leader of the mountains classification during that stage.
* In Stage 5,
John Degenkolb, who was second in the points classification, wore the green jersey, because
Michael Matthews (in first place) wore the red jersey as leader of the general classification during that stage.
* In Stages 7–9,
Chris Froome, who was second in the combination classification, wore the white jersey, because
Alejandro Valverde
Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish cyclist, who competed as a professional in road bicycle racing from 2002 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2022, and now competes in gravel cycling for the Movistar Team Gravel Squad.
During ...
(in first place) wore the red jersey as leader of the general classification during that stage.
* In Stage 16,
Joaquim Rodríguez, who was third in the combination classification, wore the white jersey, because
Alejandro Valverde
Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish cyclist, who competed as a professional in road bicycle racing from 2002 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2022, and now competes in gravel cycling for the Movistar Team Gravel Squad.
During ...
(in first place) wore the blue polka-dot jersey as leader of the mountains classification during that stage, while
Alberto Contador (in second place) wore the red jersey as leader of the general classification during that stage.
* In Stages 19–21,
Alejandro Valverde
Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish cyclist, who competed as a professional in road bicycle racing from 2002 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2022, and now competes in gravel cycling for the Movistar Team Gravel Squad.
During ...
, who was second in the combination classification, wore the white jersey, because
Alberto Contador (in first place) wore the red jersey as leader of the general classification during that stage.
Classification standings
General classification
Points classification
King of the Mountains classification
Combination classification
Team classification
References
External links
Official website2014 Vuelta a España at Cycling NewsAll stagesVuelta 2014: downloadable special magazine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vuelta a Espana, 2014
2014
The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...
2014 UCI World Tour
2014 in Spanish road cycling