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Itzulia Basque Country stage 3 LIVE: 16-man break up the road and Isaac del Toro abandons on hilly third day
One for the hardy sprinters on a 152.8km loop around Basauri
That pair lead the race as they climb up the final classified climb of the day, which averages 56% for 2km.
Laurance and Arrieta have clipped off the front of the lead group, and now lead the race.
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A Decathlon teammate leads Seixas over the top of the climb, about 1:30 after the break.
Arrieta took 6 riders with him over the top of the climb.
Arrieta leads the break as they near the top, and is dropping a few of his companions.
Not among them is Dinham, who was dropped and is being caught by the peloton.
Most of the break has come back together now, as they reach the last kilometre of the climb.
Four or five more riders are coming up to the leading four.
Ayuso has been dropped out of the peloton. He’s struggling yet again.
Van der Lee has company – he’s been joined by Fortunato, Arrieta and Johannessen.
Tudor Pro Cycling become the first team in the peloton to up the pace on this climb and ride at the front.
No team in the peloton is laying it down on this climb, and so the break’s lead is growing, back up to over two minutes.
That five second lead doesn’t look as big as it is, foreshortened as they hit the steep 9% gradients of the final kilometres of the climb.
He has a lead of five seconds.
The break is on the climb, and we have a first attack! Van der Lee has gone clear.
It’s no longer just Cofidis who are pulling at the front of the peloton. Lots of teams are up there, in a bunch all spread out as they ride up the climb.
Cofidis leading the peloton.
The stronger climbers in the breakaway will surely use this climb to try to thin out this group. Look out for Fortunato, Van Wilder, Johannessen and Martin.
40KM TO GO
Still the break’s lead comes slowly down. It’s now at 1:20, as they make their way down a shallow descent.
The men’s Scheldeprijs is nearing its business end. We’re bringing you all the action here.
The breakaway leading the race.
50KM TO GO
60KM TO GO
Seixas still had an issue to sort out, and has changed bikes again. But everything is calm out there.
That means the new virtual KOM rankings look like this:
2 Seixas 13
3 Skjelmose 8
4 Baudin 6
5 Mintegi 6
On the Alto de los Heros, King of the Mountains leader Bou added to his advanatage by being first over the climb, ahead of Arrieta and Fortunato.
Cofidis have joined Decathlon in setting the pace at the front of the peloton. They are presumably working for Alex Aranburu, who would be one of the favourites if everything is bright back for a sprint finish.
Seixas is back in the peloton.
If you missed the women’s Scheldeprijs and want to know what happened, have a read of our race report here.
Gutiérrez’s mission is over, and he’s caught by the peloton.
He’s in the convoy having had to have a bike change.
Paul Seixas is with his team car in the convoy having a drink on this descent, looking very relaxed.
70KM TO GO
Two minutes is the break’s lead over the peloton shortly after they crest the climb, with Jorge Gutiérrez in between at 1:17.
There’s one other rider still trying to chase on to the break by himself – Jorge Gutiérrez of the Equipo Kern Pharma team.
Chapeau to the Euskaltel pair of Lastra and Bizkarra, who managed to join the break before the top of the climb.
Decathlon are leading the peloton on the climb, and keeping the gap at about two minutes.
We’re learning that other were involved in that crash, too, including Ben Tulett and Alex Baudin, who were sixth and fifth overall respectivley. Nobody else abandoned, thankfully.
We have a reason for Del Toro’s abandon – he was indeed involved in a crash. It wasn’t too heavy, and he managed to get back on his feet and ten his bike, but was bad enough for him to pull out.
It seems the timing of 50 seconds was not that between the leaders, but rather between them and the two Euskaltel chasers. The break have a comfortable lead after all, of two minutes on the peloton.
Two Euskaltel – Euskadi are in between the break and the peloton – Mikel Bizkarra and Jonathan Lastra. Rather than lead the peloton’s chase, they’re trying to make their own way to the break.
This climb could be important for the strong climbers in the break to up the pace and increase their lead, even if it means dropping those less fast going uphill.
The peloton aren’t happy to give this break much leeway after all! They’ve brought the gap down to 50 seconds. This isn’t looking so good for the break after all.
Having been worn down all day by the undulating terrain, the riders are about to take on the first proper climb – the category two Puerto de la Barrerilla. This one rises for 5km at 6.5%, and the plateau at the top is the highest point of the day.
Del Toro might have been beneath his best in the previous two stages, but he was still decently positioned on GC, in eighth at 2:44.
DNF – ISAAC DEL TORO
80KM TO GO
A glimpse of the fight in the peloton earlier, before the break formed.
So, the 14 riders who lead the race are:
Ilan Van Wilder
Tobias Halland Johannessen
Lorenzo Fortunato
Guillaume Martin
Clément Braz Afonso
Jardi Christiaan van der Lee
James Shaw
Joan Bou
Matthew Dinham
Reuben Thompson
Natnael Tesfatsion
Sinuhé Fernández
Igor Arrieta
We’ll bring you a full list of everone who’s in this break shortly.
Almost a minute and a half for the group now. It seems the pelotonhas sat up, and, at long last, the stage has its break of the day.
A few riders managed to bridge up to the group, meaning there are a total of 14 in it now.
90KM TO GO
Johannessen is one of 6 riders in this group under 6 minutes down on GC – the others being Van Wilder, Guillaume Martin, Clément Braz Afonso, Lorenzo Fortunato and Jardi Christiaan van der Lee.
As is Tobias Halland Johannessen, who would have been a contender for the yellow jersey had he not lost over four minutes yesterday.
Fortunato and King of the Mountains Bou are in this new lead group.
Van Wilder and Laurance are part of a large group of 15 that’s gone clear. Will the peloton chase this one down too, or are they at the end of their tether?
Ilan Van Wilder and Axel Laurance are the latest riders to try a move. The latter comes as a bit of a surprise, as he’d be one of the favourites in a bunch finish.
The parcours really is testing at the moment. They’re currently going up another unclassified climb, which averages 5.8% for 2km.
100KM TO GO
The riders are climbing the Alto de los Heros, which, despite its difficult vital stats of a 5.4% average for 3.3km, has not been classified. Parcours at Itzulia Basque Country are always deceptively tricky, with hidden difficulties like this.
Marc Soler, im typical agressive fashion, was briefly off the front of the race, but has been caught by the front peloton.
The first and second groups have come together, but the third lags behind still.
There are more splits in the peloton, which now appears to be in three different groups.
110KM TO GO
That group has been caught – it was surely too dangerous to allow up the road.
Ben Healy, Magnus Cort, Quinn Simmons and Steven Kruijswijk are other riders present in this group.
There are some big names too, including Tejada, who is a threat on GC in tenth overall.
We have a development – a large group of eleven riders have joined the two leaders at the front.
There are only 10km left in the women’s Scheldeprijs. You can follow all the action with us here.
120KM TO GO
The peloton is chasing this one down too, though, their initial lead of 25 seconds having decreased to 15 seconds.
Iñigo Elosegui and, yet again, Baptiste Veistroffer have attacked and have a small lead.
The peloton is all back together again having been split earlier.
130KM TO GO
The race is very much on as attackers try to form a break, and there’s been a split in the bunch.
It’s another warm day out there in the Basque Country, with a temperature of over 20 degrees. So far this race has not been affected by the kind of rain weather familiar from past editions and that this part of the world is renowned for – the tourist board must be grateful, not to mention the riders taking part.
The riders are currently climbing a small unclassified hill, typical of today’s undulating terrain.
And now they’ve been clawed back – the race is all together again.
140KM TO GO
Veistroffer has joined the other two, and they have 30 seconds on the peloton. This is looking promising for them.
Veistroffer is purusuing them, after his initial attempt to go clear failed. He’s clearly in the mood today.
Maxime Decomble and the man in the King of the Mountain’s jersey, Joan Bou, are the latest riders to make a move.
With so many riders no longer a threat on GC, and on a day with parcours that could suit many types of riders, today’s could be a very competetive fight to get into the day’s break.
That duo has been brought back.
Anders Halland Johannessen and Baptiste Veistroffer are on the attack.
OFFICIAL START
A reminder of what happened at yesterday’s stage.
And in the men’s Scheldeprijs, Tim Merlier is back and hoping to seal a third consecutive title, but is up against quality and in-form opposition in Jasper Philipsen and Dylan Groenewegen.
The cycling world is still deep into classics season, and, away from the Basque Country, two more races are happening today – both of which we have coverage of.
In the women’s Scheldeprijs, many of the world’s sprinters are hoping to capitalise on the absence of Lorena Wiebes to take a big win.
Scheldeprijs Women LIVE: Can anyone prevent a bunch sprint, or will the fast women take the honours again?
145 riders who are left in the race are on the move, taking off from the unofficial start. We’ll have racing soon!
The driver of the vehicle who caused Landa’s crash also won’t be here today, after the UCI commissaires expelled them from the race.
Mikel Landa is not here today, having pulled out overnight due to his heavy crash yesterday. Thankfully, his team reported that he did not suffer any fractures or long-term damage, so hopefully it won’t be long before we see him racing again.
There might not be a single climb hard enough to draw the GC contenders out, but the total of 2,824m of climbing throughout the day makes it a testing one that many puncheurs might back themselves to go for the stage win.
Paul Seixas leads the race after a jaw-dropping attack on the final climb yesterday, and it’s difficult to see how his rivals are going to gain the two minutes + they need to gain on him.
Having won the first two stages back-to-back, we expect him to take more of a back seat today – but such is his form that we can’t be sure he’s not hungry for more success.
After yesterday’s big GC sort-out, today will be a much milder day in terms of parcours. There are still plenty of hills on the menu, however, and though this might be the best chance for a bunch sprint this week, it’s far from guaranteed.
Hello and welcome to stage three of Itzulia Basque Country!
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