Vuelta a Castilla y León (final stage)

Sylwester Szmyd confirms third place in Castilla y León overall after hellish stage; Rojas (3rd) claims points jersey in Spain

David Belda (BUR) is the final winner of the 29th Vuelta a Castilla y León after he and his team-mates got over the 164.6-kilometer stage three, and endless succession of climbs and descents in the provinces of Zamora and León, over five rated climbs and countless slopes en route to Bembibre.

Movistar Team led a majority of the day’s moves in this final stage: firstly with Lastras and Sütterlin, into the maxi-break of 24 riders which kept the front until the Alto del Peñón (Cat-1); then Visconti, away through the Alto de los Portillinos (Cat-1), one of the versants of the famous Morredero.

With Txoperena (EUK) as the only valiant to break apart in the descent leading to the Alto de Onamio (Cat-3), around thirty kilometers from the finish, Luis León Sánchez (CJR) launched an attack impossible to be responded by any of his rivals, including a telephone squad that featured Moreno -5th in the final GC-, Szmyd and Rojas, who led the bunch home for 3rd behind his fellow region man and the only rival of his late attack, Portuguese Sérgio Sousa (EFG).

No real fight between the GC contenders meant that Belda, Marcos García and Szmyd himself conserved their respective podium places. Rojas also paid a visit as winner of the Points ranking, thanks to bonus earned today and on Friday with his win in Zamora, the biggest joy for the lads directed by Chente and Laguía in their final weekend of racing in Spain before the National champs in this same region.

Pictures (c): Vuelta a Castilla y León