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Vuelta Stage 21: Contador crowns comeback with second overall win, Degenkolb takes fifth stage victory

Drama right to the end of absorbing race as Valverde snatches points jersey from Rodriguez on final day

Alberto Contador has won the Vuelta for the second time in his career, just a month after returning to racing with Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank following a six-month absence from competition following his ban due to his positive test for clenbuterol in the 2010 Tour de France. The stage win in Madrid today went to Argos Shimano's John Degenkolb, the German picking up his fifth sprint victory of this year's race, today holding off Liquigas-Cannondale's Elia Viviani and Daniele Bennati of RadioShack-Nissan to cross the line first.

Degenkolb had already seen his chances of winning the points competition disappear, but at the very end of a race that has been one of the most dramatic Grand Tours in recent years, there was still time for one final twist in that classification as Movistar's Alejandro Valverde finished in sixth place in the sprint to snatch the green jersey from Katusha's Joaquin Rodriguez.

The latter, who lost the lead of the Giro d'Italia in May on the very last day in Milan when Garmin's Ryder Hesjedal overhauled him in the time trial, had led this year's Vuelta for a fortnight and defended his lead through three tough days in the mountains last weekend before Contador rode to a sensational victory on what had seemed in advance to be an innocuous Stage 17 on Wednesday.

Rodriguez completes the podium behind Contador and Valverde, the latter also taking the combined jersey, while Movistar won the team classification. There were no changes in time gaps between the leading trio today, Contador winning by 1 minute 13 seconds from Valverde, with Rodriguez a further 21 seconds back.

Team Sky's Chris Froome, runner-up last year, held on to his fourth place, more than ten minutes down on Contador as the exertions of a season that was disrupted early on by illness and then saw him recover to clinch second place in the Tour de France behind team mate Bradley Wiggins finally caught up with him.

This year's Vuelta may have been a race too far for the Kenya-born Briton, but he'll be more interested than most in the route of the 2013 Tour when it's announced in Paris next month, with the prospect of him being Sky's designated leader, depending on the parcours. While the past three weeks may have finished in frustration, his first experience as team leader in a Grand Tour will have been a valuable one.

Crossing the line, Contador appeared to hold up seven fingers, possibly representing the seven Grand Tours, including the 2008 Vuelta, where he has finished on the top step of the podium - although of course he lost two of those, the 2010 Tour de France and 2011 Giro d'Italia, when the Court of Arbitration for Sport banned him in February.

Vuelta Stage 21 Result  
  
1  DEGENKOLB, John       ARG       2h 44' 57''
2  VIVIANI, Elia         LIQ    All at same time
3  BENNATI, Daniele      RNT
4  DAVIS, Allan          OGE
5  FERNÁNDEZ, Koldo      GRS
6  VALVERDE, Alejandro   MOV
7  STEEGMANS, Gert       OPQ
8  STYBAR, Zdenek        OPQ
9  KREDER, Raymond       GRS
10 VERDUGO, Gorka        EUS
11 LIGTHART, Pim         VCD
12 DUQUE, Leonardo       COF
13 BRESCHEL, Matti       RAB
14 CARDOSO, Manuel       CJR
15 LODEWYCK, Klaas       BMC
16 KOSTYUK, Denys        LAM
17 MONDORY, Lloyd        ALM
18 GARCIA, Egoitz        COF
19 SWIFT, Ben            SKY
20 ROLLIN, Dominique     FDJ
  
Last man home on Stage 21  
  
175 DOCKER, Mitchell     OGE          + 3' 39''
   
Final General Classification   
  
1  CONTADOR, Alberto     STB       84h 59' 49''
2  VALVERDE, Alejandro   MOV          + 1' 16''
3  RODRIGUEZ, Joaquin    KAT          + 1' 37''
4  FROOME, Christopher   SKY          + 10' 16''
5  MORENO, Daniel        KAT          + 11' 29''
6  GESINK, Robert        RAB          + 12' 23''
7  TALANSKY, Andrew      GRS          + 13' 28''
8  TEN DAM, Laurens      RAB          + 13' 41''
9  ANTON, Igor           EUS          + 14' 01''
10 INTXAUSTI, Beñat      MOV          + 16' 13''
  
Final Points Classification   
  
1  VALVERDE, Alejandro   MOV               199
2  RODRIGUEZ, Joaquin    KAT               193
3  CONTADOR, Alberto     STB               161
4  DEGENKOLB, John       ARG               149
5  BENNATI, Daniele      RNT               107

Final Mountains Classification   

1  CLARKE, Simon         OGE               63
2  DE LA FUENTE, David   CJR               40
3  RODRIGUEZ, Joaquin    KAT               36
4  DE GENDT, Thomas      VCD               33
5  VALVERDE, Alejandro   MOV               31

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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10 comments

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Lungsofa74yearold | 11 years ago
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Couldn't agree more with Brummie et al. The time differences say it all between 1st three and everyone else....  39 Also why can they only do this (with the exception of Bertie) in Spain....more relaxed 'testing' regime perhaps....

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dullard | 11 years ago
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First two unrepentant dopers, third spent his formative years with ONCE and Saunier. I didn't even switch on, it's a Spanish doping free for all (see Snr Cobo last year).

Karbon Kev - you are being being ironic, aren't you...?

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The Rumpo Kid | 11 years ago
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The ITV4 commentary (don't know who) said that Rodriguez, possibly thinking the race was won, spent the rest day in bed rather than light training which is the norm. May be relevant, maybe not.

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drheaton | 11 years ago
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Fair's fair.

Froome was knackered, Valverde didn't race the TdF that hard, Contador had a 6 month holiday and Rodriguez had a few months off mid-season. All three Spandiards were always going to be tough to beat for a fully fit Froome but after having ridden so hard for so long during the TdF and Olympics this was a race too far.

Don't forget, Contador struggled to 5th in last year's TdF after racing the Giro, back to back grand tours is tough if you're racing at the front.

Yes, Contador did seem particularly 'fresh' after the rest days but he was in great condition after his ban and no doubt having a day off from racing was enough to refresh him more than the others whereas Froome's fatigue will have been so deeply set in that he'd have needed a couple of weeks off to race at Contador's level.

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sponican | 11 years ago
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Me too. I just haven't been able to watch the Vuelta - it seems ridiculous. The three Spanish supermen stretch credulity a bit beyond breaking point for me. Valverde's sudden mastery of the high mountains since his comeback seems a little unlikely too, I have to say.

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Karbon Kev | 11 years ago
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best vuelta in years, with or without druggies, thrilling grand tour imo ... so much better than TdeF.

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Brummmie replied to Karbon Kev | 11 years ago
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Karbon Kev wrote:

best vuelta in years, with or without druggies, thrilling grand tour imo ... so much better than TdeF.

For real ?

A vile doping midget returns to a home win and it smells just fine to you?

Do you remember Cuntador flying away from the leaders up the cols in the Giro ? Like some kind of skinny superman ! No, don't worry he's just a great athlete....... EPO'd off his little Spanish teeth !

Why oh why do people give these worms any fanfare at all. Revolting.  14

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Brummmie | 11 years ago
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Contador................Am I the only one that feels completely flat about this?

Does this result not hurt the sport even more? Contador the victim of the stealthy drugged steak !

Sad, really sad..........

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antonio replied to Brummmie | 11 years ago
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Brummmie wrote:

Contador................Am I the only one that feels completely flat about this?

Does this result not hurt the sport even more? Contador the victim of the stealthy drugged steak !

Sad, really sad..........

No you're not on your own, can't understand why no one sees the connection between rest days and the fact he's the only one flying the following day.

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bauchlebastart replied to antonio | 11 years ago
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Brummmie wrote:

No you're not on your own, can't understand why no one sees the connection between rest days and the fact he's the only one flying the following day.

Valverde put in a pretty good effort that day too  39

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