Video: Final Stage of the 2011 Vuelta a Espana

The first video is the peloton and the support vehicles going through after to finish their third lap of the Madrid circuit.

Video: La Vuelta 2011 - Stage 21

So I popped down to Madrid and took in the final stage of this year's Vuelta a Espana and I wasn't dissapointed. Juanjo Cobo's fans were out in force, with their drums and cowbells, making a brilliant atmosphere. I even managed to find a few of the riders after the stage and took a lot of pictures. So here are a few of the pictures I took, set the the Vuelta's theme tune Como Yo, by La Fe de Manuela. I am currently uploading my pictures to Flickr and they should all be on the blog by tomorrow, so enjoy the video.

Video: Interview with David Moncoutie, Stage 11 winner (In French)

VaE: Moncoutie moves closer to fourth consecutive mountains classification, with victory on Stage 11

David Moncoutié’s efforts finally paid off, as he rode the final 19 kilometres of Stage 11 alone, to take his fourth Vuelta a Espana stage.

Moncoutié is known for his climbing prowess and moved himself within one point of a fourth consecutive Vuelta mountains classification victory. The Cofidis rider got in to a breakaway, with several other riders, after almost 70 kilometres of racing. He also went on to take points on two of the three climbs, placing him just behind Matteo Montaguti.

Cofidis have had a lacklustre year, when it comes to Grand Tours, so this victory will prove a big boost for them. Nobody could keep up with the pace of Moncoutié and second place man Beñat Intxausti rolled across the line over a minute down.

TdF: Hushovd shines as RadioShack suffer

Thor Hushovd showed his world championship winning colours, after a stunning descent, to take Stage 13 of the 2011 Tour de France.

Hushovd, who was in yellow for much of the first week, and David Moncoutie tracked down Jeremy Roy, who had been out on his own for some time. The Norwegian wasn’t going to stop there and left the other two, but he couldn’t relax in the final kilometre. With some very tight bends, it was all too easy to crash and Moncoutie was bearing down on him. Hushovd finally took the stage by 10 seconds and become the first world champion to win a stage, since Oscar Freire in 2002.

La Vuelta - Week Three Round-Up

Stage 15 saw the Spaniard Carlos Barredo finally break his grand tour duck with a win on the summit of Lagos de Covadonga in horrible conditions. The Quick Step rider became known for his fruitless attacks during the Tour de France this year. He finally reaped the rewards and finished over a minute ahead of second place man Nico Sijmens. He announced later that he is going to leave the Belgian team and join Rabobank next season.

Two days after losing race leader Igor Anton in a huge crash Euskaltel were on top again when Mikel Nieve left his companions on the ascent of the Cotobello. Pre-tour favourite Fränk Schleck finally showed his form after breaking his collarbone on stage three of the Tour de France. The Luxembourg road champion hadn’t made much of an impression, but chased Nieve in to second place.

The big news of the day, however, was Joaquin Rodriguez taking back the red jersey from Vincenzo Nibali after the Liquigas rider cracked and lost over 30 seconds on the final climb.

Time Trial Surprise
After the rest day came the time trial and Peter Vilets sprung the surprise of the tour after he beat Denis Menchov and Fabian Cancellara. The HTC Columbia rider put on a stunning performance and took advantage of a tail wind towards the end of the course to outclass the rest of the field.