"I wasted my opportunity today" - Disappointment for Joshua Tarling as he misses out on Red Jersey in first ever Grand Tour stage at Vuelta a Espana
Cycling
Joshua Tarling came into his first ever Grand Tour stage as one of the favourites to take the Red Jersey at the 2024 Vuelta a Espana. Sadly for the Welshman of the INEOS Grenadiers however, he had to settle for sixth on the stage.
"It was terrible. I just felt so bad really," Tarling reflects honestly in his post-stage interview with Eurosport. "Not to take away from Edoardo Affini (leader at the time ed.), it was a really good ride, but I just felt flat. I struggled in the week between the Olympics and this, and yeah, I just felt like a brick."
In the end, as mentioned, it was 6th place for Tarling on the stage with UAE Team Emirates' Brandon McNulty moving into the first Red Jersey of the Spanish Grand Tour, with the American clocking a time 8 seconds quicker than Tarling's best efforts on the day.
"I honestly don't know why I was feeling like that, I was just feeling heavy," Tarling adds. "A bit lost really. Like I said, I struggled after the Olympics, head wise and training wise and yeah, I thought I was on it and confident today, but got going and sunk a bit. I wasted my opportunity today so I think I'm going to really try and step up for the team and help whoever I need to. With this wind and stuff, I can be a help, especially tomorrow along the coast."
No ego there and he really did not blow it. He is 20 years old and will have off days. He still has a lot to learn and he knows that.
To big of an ego, there are as good or better TT riders than him. His day will come but not just yet. Today was a perfect course for him and he blew it.
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- Doesn't mean anything. In 2023 he was only 3rd at Paris-Nice but then won the toursomeeffingname17-03-2025
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leedorney17-03-2025 - Not sure that’s the whole story otherwise babies would be a lit more susceptible to nose bacteria too. Obviously cyclist breathe far more than average humans which should help keep things cleaner, on the other hand if you don’t clean your nose well or use an infected finger … and then why bacteria and not viruses? I would prepare mentally for more testing if this doesn’t solve things. Teeth and gums are the most overlooked entry point for infectious agents. Ears and eyes can also be easily contaminated.Mistermaumau17-03-2025
- Yeah, sorry, some people forget a few facts like him being in a similar age category as Tadej, Jonas, Remco, Tom and that there are plenty of promising younger riders developing too so it’s really quite far-fetched based on current givens.Mistermaumau17-03-2025
- If they learnt from 2024 MVDP/JP strategy, yes, possibleMistermaumau17-03-2025
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- Also, note how fast a counter article appeared, either naturally or as part of a comm. strategyMistermaumau17-03-2025
- Not sure, remember where he is saying it and what this person did for him. Perhaps he was coaxed into saying something to stimulate US interest or provocative to improve you know who’s media significance.Mistermaumau17-03-2025