"In the end, second is not bad" - Runner-up Ethan Vernon rewarded with a White jersey

Jasper Philipsen left no room for doubts in the opening stage of Vuelta a Espana and after Tour de France, he once again wears the leader's jersey after the opening stage. Behind the Belgian, Ethan Vernon from Israel - Premier Tech sprinted to a nice second place. By far his career high at a Grand Tour.

"I wanted to win, but in the end, second is not bad, and it gives us confidence for the rest of the race," said Vernon after the stage. His effort was rewarded with a White jersey for the leader of youth competition.

"We were at the front and then we were at the back and then we were at the front again, so in the end, we took it up, which we weren’t planning to do," says Vernon. "In the end, I had Jasper’s wheel. He was super fast. I tried to jump him by taking the sprint up myself, but his lead-out man took me a bit wide."

Despite this defeat, Vernon seems confident that he can succeed on another day. "I wasn’t a million miles away, and we’ve got four more opportunities. Anything can happen on a different day. So I’m pretty confident we can go one further this race."