Richard Carapaz wants to swap his Tour de France polka dots for the red jersey at the Vuelta a Espana. His team EF Education-EasyPost once again builds their Grand Tour around the former Giro champion. In absense of the 'big three' (Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel), this year's Vuelta is up for grabs. And so the 31-year-old Carapaz certainly isn't without chances.
"Vuelta a Espana is a super special race for me. I’ve already worn the red jersey. I’ve been on the podium and won a couple of stages. The aim for me is clear: This year we want to go for the GC win and get the best possible result for the team," the Ecuadorian sounds confident ahead of the Gran Salida in team press release.
Carapaz kicked off his professional career in Spain and as such has only fond memories of racing on the Iberian peninsula. "It’s also a special race because it reminds me of my first years as a pro cyclist. Being in Spain is like racing at home for me. I will be this year’s leader for the team. I want to win the race," he declares.
Carapaz ended the Tour de France on high, with a Polka Dot jersey on his shoulders and a stage win as a cherry on top. However GC wasn't an option after significant loss of time in the first week. This also allowed the Ecuadorian to already look towards next goals in 2024: "After the Tour de France, I had some days at home to recover and recharge my batteries. I then started training again as usual in altitude in Andorra, climbing a lot of cols and acclimatizing my body to the heat. Now, I feel prepared and ready to be at the start of Vuelta a Espana 2024," he concludes.
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