Primoz Roglic won the 17th stage of the Vuelta a España and Team Jumbo-Visma claimed all three spots on the day’s podium. Roglic crossed the line with Jonas Vingegaard, finishing just 19 seconds ahead of general classification leader Sepp Kuss in third. Kuss also celebrated his 29th birthday on Wednesday and held on to the overall lead by eight seconds over Vingegaard and 1:08 over Roglic in third.
Juan Ayuso of UAE Team Emirates is the closest competitor to the Jumbo-Visma trio and is 4:00 behind Kuss in fourth.
“It's great to take the win on this climb,” Roglic said. “The Angliru is one of the most famous climbs in the world. The mountain has a rich history, and the gradients are unprecedented. I wanted to win this stage.”
On the way to the win, Roglic showed a fine display of teamwork Kuss and Vingegaard. The trio rode together at the front of the Angliru for a while. At a blistering pace, Roglic and Vingegaard rode together to the line, where the Slovenian took the day's victory. Kuss beat Mikel Landa in a sprint at the end to get four bonus seconds and keep the red leader’s jersey.
“Sepp told us to give everything,” Roglic said. “Of course, it feels strange to leave a teammate behind. But we are riders, and we always try to do our best. I told Sepp to keep fighting and to believe in himself. He heroically fought his way to the finish. We are here for a bigger goal, and that is to win the Vuelta with the team.”
“We knew today would be one of the decisive days,” birthday boy Kuss said. “Claiming first, second and third place, we passed this tough test with flying colors. Things are looking good for Team Jumbo-Visma. But there is still a lot to do in the coming days. For example, we should not underestimate tomorrow's stage. The time differences don't lie. It is up to us to give everything in the remaining stages.”
