Vuelta a Espana director makes request for UAE Team Emirates: "The race and the country need Ayuso to be there"
Cycling
Javier Guillén, director of the Vuelta a España, is very excited about the 2024 edition of the race that will start from Lisbon on August 17 and hopes that riders who are not fixed for the race, such as Primoz Roglic, Carlos Rodríguez or Juan Ayuso, will be confirmed soon in the startlist.
Thus, in statements to diario AS, the general manager of Unipublic, spoke first on Primoz Roglic, a three-time winner of the race in recent years, who was forced to abandon the Tour de France due to injuries, and has not made a decision on whether he'll race the Vuelta.: "I'm confident that Roglic will be there. We're counting on him, but it's clear he'll come if he's fit enough to race the race. We know that Bora will bring a team so he will be well supported."
Although Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar have assured that they will not go, Guillén is sure that there will be a great show in the Vuelta with a high level of UAE, with a Richard Carapaz that guarantees a show and he hopes with the presence of INEOS Grenadiers' Carlos Rodríguez:
"UAE will come with serious aspirations to win, with Adam Yates who can be one of the candidates. Carapaz is coming, who always encourages, and with the participation of Carlos Rodriguez I'm optimistic because of how he finished the Tour and his statements." He fails to mention João Almeida who finished fourth in the Tour de France and will be the best-placed rider who will race the Vuelta, who simultaneously has a home start to a Grand Tour, something that has happened only once in the history of Portugal.
Guillén's wish
However Guillén is particularly keen on having the main Spanish riders take part in the race, including Juan Ayuso who is also in doubt as it was not in his initial schedue: "As of today we don't have Ayuso's confirmation and I also think that there is a question to analyze and that is that the teams are made in advance. The riders have their preparations done and I don't think it's easy to remove a rider from a team to put another one. From there, as a Spanish race, I ask the team to bring us Ayuso. But I ask it with affection, I ask it cordially and I ask it understanding any circumstance. Of course, both the rider, the race and the country need Ayuso to be there".
In the final days of the Tour de France, Guillén told EFE Agency that both Roglic and Ayuso has confirmed their presence in the Vuelta. At the time, sources within Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe confirmed to CyclingUpToDate at the Tour de France that there was no decision and he was only riding his bike indoors. It is a somewhat difficult line of thought to follow, as he continues to try and have the best possible startlist in Lisbon in the space of two and a half weeks.
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
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Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- Just looked again at the photo. Yeah I stand by that. If MS had fallen over in Brands direction I don’t even think she would have hit her. You must be a UCI race commissioner. I’ll be sure to check my sock height should I ever see you on a ride. Looks like everyone else on here sees what I see.mij08-11-2026
- I said looking at the photo it doesn’t appear she deviated. Chill out, not stating my word is the final judgement. Just commenting that based on the photo I don’t see it. And BTW the Dutch coach even said she didn’t impede her.mij08-11-2026
- Blah Blah Blah !frieders308-11-2026
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- How can you use a photo post incident to judge the incident itself (which is not hard to find if you’re prepared to invest the same amount of time in searching as writing that comment? It’s harsh but technically right even though this or worse is not always sanctioned in every race. The two things that went against MS (who unfortunately for her would still have won without making her mistake) are that it was not a bunch sprint where there could have been an overlooked incident or mitigating circumstances explaining a deviation. Everything was focused on just those 2, Schreiber was riding beautifully balanced which made her sudden deviation look unnatural stroke as if it could have been in some part intentional whilst she was slowly drifting ever closer towards the barrier to a point that would have reached obstruction level. In her defence, it might have been the realisation she was heading towards that that made her react suddenly and caused the deviation involuntarily. In any case, congratulations to her for the ride of her life, in people’s minds she will be credited for it.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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santiagobenites07-11-2026 - Seriously why do they keep doing stupid things like this. Its one thing to relegate when the placings are minor, when the action is blatant. But when it is ambiguous, why dont they at least take advice from some higher up to avoid embarrassing themselves. This is similar to the Halland goal when his teammate was clearly offside and interfered in play and VAR gave them the goal. if you dont have evidence you cannot convict. Even for doping they have these rulesabstractengineer07-11-2026
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A lower back fracture for 🇸🇮 Primoz Roglic after his #TdF2024 crash! 🥲 We wish you a speedy recovery, Primoz! 🤞 📸 @VamosCiclismo / Roglic Instagram
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