Dubai: UAE Team Emirates rider Alexandr Riabushenko produced a scintillating ride late on Wednesday to snatch second place in Stage Three of the Vuelta Al País Vasco. The young Belarusian, who joined the side as a trainee in 2017, was unlucky to not take first place after a thrilling bunched sprint finish, which saw Jay McCarthy (Bora-Hansgrohe) claim the stage win.
Commenting on the podium finish, Riabushenko said: “I’m happy, but I can’t hide the fact that I’m a little bit upset because I could have won. It would have been great to get my first win as a professional at the end of such a difficult stage. In the sprint, I had good feelings and 500 metres from the line I was in good position. At 300 metres, McCarthy started to go and unfortunately I was behind him the entire time.”
Thursday’s race will see riders face the fourth stage, an individual time trial of 19.4 kilometres starting and ending in Lodosa. The team’s participation on the UCI World Tour gives the local community the opportunity to come together and support world-class athletes as they aim to become one of the top cycling teams on the tour.
