Tour de San Luis (st. 3)

Murcian powerhouse from Movistar Team completed 130km breakaway at first mountain stage in Tour de San Luis. Stage victory for Diniz (FUN), new leader; Herrada takes 12th

In his third day of competition in the Movistar Team jersey, Eloy Teruel offered a first glimpse of the quality that brought him into the telephone squad. A day before his favourite speciality, time trial, and at the first mountain stage of the 7th Tour de San Luis -the 173km trek between La Toma and the Alto del Mirador del Potrero (Cat. 1)-, the Spanish rider searched for the break into a route that also featured the Alto de Nogolí, the race’s ceiling over 2,000 meters above sea level.

The seven-man attempt including Teruel, which kicked off at the 35th kilometer and gained a seven-minute advantage before halfway into the stage, broke up twice: at the first climb, where the telephone squad’s rider struggled but eventually bridged his gap back to the group; and in the finale, where Teruel went apart with locals Leonardo Messineo and Jorge Giacinti (SLS) and Luxembourgish rider Ben Gastauer (ALM), the last one to keep his wheel until the final 12k, over a selected, 60-man group including all Movistar Team riders.

Youngster Jesús Herrada -12th, 48 seconds behind surprising stage winner and new race leader Alex Diniz (FUN)- was the top contender from José Luis Jaimerena’s lads across the finish, in the eve of a time trial day (19k in the streets of San Luis) where the Blue riders will have another shot at the victory and a chance to progress in the teams’ overall, Movistar Team now ranked third.