Tour du Limousin (st. 1)
Spanish sprinter from Movistar Team takes 5th, grabs eleventh top-ten finish in 2015 at Massif Central race's opener in Saint-Yrieix
The 48th Tour du Limousin started off for the Movistar Team on Tuesday with a 176km trek from Limoges to Saint-Yrieix which, despite its lumpy profile and the 3,000m vertical drop announced by the organisers and local media, came down to a bunch sprint conquered by Sonny Colbrelli (BAR), who also became the first leader.
The squad directed by José Luis Laguía took most of the responsibility to chase into the main field and fought for the stage win in Enrique Sanz, only beaten by the winner, second-placed Andrea Pasqualon (SKO), Timothy Dupont (RLM, 3rd) and Simone Ponzi (STH, 4th). In turn, Jesús Herrada finished in 18th and showed focus towards the three difficult stages set to decide the race until Friday.
Wednesday will bring day two of racing in central France, with a 188km journey into Lissac-sur-Couze preceeded by the Côte de Chaleil (Cat-2; 6%) in the finale plus the uphill sprint in Le Pas Noir.
Pictures: Jennifer Lafarge