Lennert Van Eetvelt some time due to crash on Cazorla: "They say that in every Grand Tour you have a bad day. I hope that this was my bad day"
Cycling
Things didn't go as envisioned for Lennert Van Eetvelt in the final kilometers of the stage 8. The young Belgian was held up by a crash as the peloton was approaching the steep final climb in Cazorla. Afterwards, it was a task to limit the damage as much as possible, crossing the line in 9th place.
"When I was going up that climb, Aleksandr Vlasov fell, which meant I had to put my foot down," the 23-year-old rider reflects on a hectic final in an interview with Het Nieuwsblad. "That was not a good start, especially since it was a very steep section right away." The loss of speed at the entering 15% slopes cost the Belgian rider a lot of time and energy, as he tried to catch up.
"In the slightly flatter part I was still able to keep up more or less, but by then I had already shot a serious cartridge. At that moment Primoz Roglic accelerated again. Moreover, I certainly did not have the best feeling on the bike," said Van Eetvelt, who eventually crossed the line 29 seconds behind stage winner Roglic, but for example more than half a minute in front of another victim of Vlasov's crash, the defending Vuelta champion Sepp Kuss.
"When something like that happens, you have to limit the damage and I think I succeeded. They say that in every Grand Tour you have a bad day. Well, I hope that this was my bad day. I might have hoped to take the youth jersey, but Antonio Tiberi was strong. Regardless, the Vuelta is still long," Van Eetvelt remains optimistic about the future.
In the general classification of Vuelta a Espana, Lennert Van Eetvelt has moved up to sixth place despite the complications, and is now 5:15 behind red jersey Ben O'Connor and 1:26 short of Primoz Roglic, who seems to have the legs to take his fourth Vuelta title and potentially equal Roberto Heras' record.
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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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- I hope he rides a bitmij15-11-2026
- Greatest athlete this world has ever produced ! LOL ... you definitely are a comdian ! Cycling is so sprecialized and you think he's the greatest athlete ever ! Still laughing !frieders315-11-2026
- b.s. headline. Jonas wasn't told anything, it is just a pundit telling him what to do. the actual article is not even close to the insinuation of the headline.mij15-11-2026
- I think Roglic could have beaten Sepp. not Jonas. I was referring to Sepp.mij15-11-2026
- I'm deeply sick of this guy and his unwillingness to race seriously for more than a month or two. I'll never respect riders who do that. Seixas will be stronger than him next season, and maybe Del Toro as well. I don't even think he'll finish on the podium at any GT where Pogi, Seixas, and Del Toro are racing.megasmacky15-11-2026
- Not a chance in hell.megasmacky15-11-2026
- If you go watch some races from last season other riders that have never caught Jonas...are now catching him. Some are just riding away from him and he can't hold the wheelmd197514-11-2026
- He just doesn't have the desire anymore. I read an article earlier today that said he almost retired last year. His reasoning was he is away from home to much. Visma was able to keep him riding by allowing him to skip certain camps. So, while currently Visma is doing altitude work...Jonas is at home. Which means 2 things. 1- He maybe fresher than other riders. But, not the condition. 2-Is a somewhat slap in the face to others on the team that are supposed to help him win. Yet feel like he hasn't done what they have so perhaps they don't provide as good of protection or they ride more for theme (which the team may not notice).md197514-11-2026
- Roglic could not have won anyway, after Jonas followed him when Roglic decided it was his turn for a stage win. Jonas had already attacked Kuss twice, so it was Jonas who was within seconds of taking the lead before Kuss was 'gifted' the win. It felt a bit like Roglic was being thrown under the bus when the team made his unhappiness public.Hills3314-11-2026
- POG1, another nice doc about our favourite, I watched most of it with a big smile on my face (except for the bits about his crashes 😢 obvs!).Lozza14-11-2026
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A strong 9th place for @LennertVEetvelt today 🔥 He moves up one spot in the GC and is now in 6th 👊🏻
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