Vuelta a Colombia may be small in terms of UCI status (2.2), but in recent years, the Colombian national race has been writing stories you wouldn't see anywhere else.
Compared to last year (read below), 2024 so far has been relatively controlled bit of racing. The opening stages offered a mix of flat and hilly stages that haven't provoked much of action in the peloton. However this was all just a calm before the storm that came in stage 4.
Alto del Sifón. Many cyclists won't ever wish to hear this name again. The climb is popular among amateurs who like to push their limits on this climb. Why? Because of its unique length of 88 kilometers at average of 4.3% with sections above 10%. The winner on the day Wilson Pena took seemingly infinite 3 hours 28 minutes and 10 seconds to ride up this monster of a climb!
Last year's edition went down in the history books thanks to currently suspended Miguel Ángel López. The former pro with Astana and briefly Movistar, was fired from the Kazakh team at the end of 2022 amidst doping allegations. With no other offers in sight, the 'Superman' joined the continental Medellín - EPM. The Colombian stage race was one of the last competitions for López before the UCI finally provisionally suspended the Colombian at the beginning of July.
But before the hammer came down at López, he managed to a feat that may never be repeated. During the ten days of racing, then 29-year-old climber won 9 (!) out of 10 stages. You would think the former pro dominated in the mountains, but López won both timetrials as well as a sprint finish. Only third stage slipped through López hands when he narrowly lost in a sprint to Jhonatan Guatibonza (currently UAE Team Gen Z). In just 6 months of racing in 2023, López racked up 20 UCI victories - a record that, if it wasn't stained by doping, would be one of the best performances in cycling history.
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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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- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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Today in @Vueltacolombia1 , the riders will go up the longest/hardest climb ever used in an UCI race: Alto el Sifon: 88 km@4,3% and the top at 4149m. Almost 4000m of climbing on a single ascent WTF! 😱🇨🇴 LIVE now here: youtube.com/live/3LQm2IysS… 📈 by @alti_col . #VColombia2024
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