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."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- for what?frieders311-11-2026
- Blah blah blah!frieders311-11-2026
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- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
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- Very true.awp10-11-2026
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