The Vuelta a España has once again been marred by large-scale protests. The sixteenth stage was shortened due to a massive Pro-Palestine demonstration. The finish was originally scheduled in Mos. Castro de Herville, but the organizers were forced to move the finish line eight kilometers earlier. The stage was won—after an improvised sprint—by breakaway rider Egan Bernal. Jonas Vingegaard remains the leader in the general classification.
The day after the rest day, the riders faced another uphill finish in the Vuelta. In the Galicia region, a particularly challenging and therefore treacherous stage was on the agenda. In the last approximately 95 kilometers, there were hardly any moments of rest. The route went continuously up and down. In short: all the ingredients were there for an exciting race scenario.
The riders just before the start - photo: Cor Vos
Along the way, there were four categorized climbs, each with varying difficulty: Alto de San Antonino (9 kilometers at 4%), Alto de Groba (11.5 kilometers at 5.4%), Alto de Prado (5.6 kilometers at 6.2%, with pitches up to 19%), and Altro Castro de Herville. The finish line was drawn on this eight-kilometer-long climb—with sections reaching 11% gradient.
Large breakaway with big names
The formation of the decisive breakaway took a little time, but after just under fifty kilometers, seventeen riders broke away from the peloton. And they weren’t minor names, including Egan Bernal (riding his 200th stage in a Grand Tour), Mikel Landa, Marc Soler, and Bob Jungels. The Dutch were notably absent, but Mauri Vansevenant added a Belgian touch to the sizable breakaway.
Marc Soler (UAE Emirates XRG), Andrea Bagioli (Lidl-Trek), Jefferson Albeiro Cepeda (Movistar), Nico Denz (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Mikel Landa, Mauri Vansevenant (Soudal Quick-Step), Egan Bernal, Bob Jungels (INEOS Grenadiers), Seann Quinn (EF Education-EasyPost), Finlay Pickering (Bahrain Victorious), Clément Braz Afonso, Rudy Molard, Brieuc Rolland (Groupama-FDJ), Victor Guernalec, Louis Rouland (Arkéa-B&B Hotels), Kevin Vermaerke (Picnic PostNL), and Jake Stewart (Israel-Premier Tech).
This breakaway quickly gained approval from the peloton—Bernal was the best-placed rider in the lead group but was over 15 minutes behind, so not immediately a threat to Jonas Vingegaard—which allowed the gap to extend to over five minutes. It was then a matter of waiting for the first explosion, but on the day’s first climb—the Alto de San Antonino—there was no fireworks yet.
Landa kicks off the action
However, on the flanks of the Alto de Prado, all hell broke loose after an attack from Mikel Landa. The Basque couldn’t wait any longer and threw down the gauntlet with about sixty kilometers to go. A vigilant Bernal quickly bridged across, and eventually Rolland, Braz Afonso, and Denz also rejoined. For the other escapees, the situation suddenly looked much less promising.
The break of the day - photo: Cor Vos
In the chasing group, Bagioli and Soler tried to shake things up, but cooperation was far from perfect, partly due to effective disruption by Jungels (working for Bernal) and Molard. As a result, the lead of the five front riders steadily increased. Was the race settled? No, because Soler single-handedly ensured the chasers could once again smell the leaders.
The Spaniard even looked to close the gap, but at that moment Bernal launched a surge. The Colombian didn’t want a regrouping, increased the pace, and suddenly Soler and Pickering found themselves twenty seconds behind again. Meanwhile, the leaders were hammering towards the base of the Alto de Prado, where a new selection took shape: the stronger Denz had to drop his fellow escapees and was swallowed up by a still-fighting Soler.
Protesters cause chaos once again
However, the Spaniard had to watch helplessly as the leaders pulled further away. While one Spaniard was losing ground, another decided to dig in. In his trademark style, Landa shook things up again, costing Rolland the group: only Bernal and Braz Afonso could keep up. These three riders appeared on course for the final climb, the Altro Castro de Herville, but pro-Palestine protesters once again threw a wrench in the plans.
Due to large-scale protests on the slopes of the final climb, the organizers, as they did on the way to Bilbao, decided at the last moment to shorten the stage and move the finish line eight kilometers earlier, at the foot of the final climb. Unlike on stage eleven, there was a stage win up for grabs this time. Thus, we ended up with a strange two-way battle—Braz Afonso had dropped out due to a flat tire—between Bernal and Landa for the victory.
photo: Cor Vos
Bernal wins shortened stage
In an improvised two-man sprint, Bernal proved to have the fastest legs, earning the Colombian champion his first truly big win since his horrific crash in 2022. However, Bernal will likely take little pleasure from his victory, knowing that the post-stage discussion focused mainly on the pro-Palestine protests and the ensuing commotion.
The GC contenders crossed the line together—except for Felix Gall, who lost time.
Poio) Mos. Castro de Herville)Vuelta a España| Rank | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 03:35:10 | |
| 2 | " | |
| 3 | + 07 | |
| 4 | + 01:02 | |
| 5 | " | |
| 6 | + 01:10 | |
| 7 | + 01:12 | |
| 8 | " | |
| 9 | + 02:48 | |
| 10 | " |
Vuelta a España| Rank | Rider | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | 61:16:35 | |
| 2 | - | + 48 | |
| 3 | - | + 02:38 | |
| 4 | - | + 03:10 | |
| 5 | - | + 04:21 | |
| 6 | - | + 04:24 | |
| 7 | - | + 04:53 | |
| 8 | - | + 05:46 | |
| 9 | - | + 06:33 | |
| 10 | - | + 08:04 |
