Solid start for Nieve

Mikel Nieve gets Team Sky off to a strong start at the Vuelta al Pais Vasco by finishing seventh on the opening stage.

Classy Contador seizes the early initiative

Mikel Nieve got Team Sky off to a strong start at the Vuelta al Pais Vasco by finishing in seventh place after Alberto Contador had claimed a fine solo victory. Nieve was one of only six riders left in a drastically reduced peloton who stayed together over the final climb of the day, and after a breakneck descent into Ordizia, he sprinted home just 36 seconds adrift of the day’s stage winner. Contador had produced a typically dominant climbing display, and latched on to Alejandro Valverde’s wheel on a brutish final ascent before leaving his Spanish compatriot in the dust and time-trialling his way to victory. The Tinkoff-Saxo rider crossed the line 14 seconds ahead of Valverde, and with no bonus seconds being awarded in the race, Contador will carry that advantage over his Movistar rival into Tuesday’s second stage.

GC test

The first day of action had always been billed as one for the general classification contenders, and so it proved with no less than eight categorised climbs featuring on the constantly undulating parcours. Four riders had escaped early on, but the pace Tinkoff-Saxo and Movistar set at the front of the peloton ensured they were swept up before the fireworks began on the second and final ascent of the Alto de Gaintza. Team Sky had kept Nieve well positioned throughout the day, and ensured the home favourite was in the first 10 riders when they circumnavigated a tight left-hand corner immediately before the road ramped skywards one last time. Nieve then set a consistent pace on the punishing slope, and stayed in contact with the likes of Cadel Evans (BMC Racing), Damiano Cunego (Lampre) and Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma – Quick-Step) as many floundered around him. By the time the final summit came, just 6.7km from home, Contador had amassed an unassailable lead however, and took control of the yellow jersey after finishing the stage off in devastating style.

Ups and downs

After the stage, Sports Director Dan Frost was pleased with Nieve’s performance, but revealed Peter Kennaugh had struggled during the opening day of action. He told us: “That was a really good performance from Nieve, but Pete had hoped to fare better. Pete felt bad the whole day and fell off the pace on the first ascent of the Ganitza. That’s a shame because he had eyes on the GC, but otherwise, the boys rode really well. “Xabi [Zandio], Vasil [Kiyryienka] and Danny [Pate] were right there with Nieve leading him on to that final climb and they did a good job to support him. “Once the climb began it was a free-for-all and it was good to see Nieve was able to stay with some of the best climbers in the world. Contador and Valverde were in a league of their own today though. “Nieve is not the most explosive of riders but he acquitted himself well and is in a good position now. “Tomorrow’s stage is a little less hilly, so we’re hoping Ben [Swift] can stick with the group and then we can lead him out for the sprint. We have to make sure Nieve is well positioned as well though. “Being from the Basque Country, this is an important race for him, and the support he’s been receiving on the roadside has been really nice to see.”;