Pavel Bittner Claims First Grand Tour Win at Vuelta Stage Five

Pavel Bittner clinched victory in a dramatic photo finish at stage five of the Vuelta a España held in Seville. Bittner, racing for DSM-Firmenich-PostNL, narrowly edged out Belgian cyclist Wout van Aert, who had launched his sprint early. Australia’s Kaden Groves finished third in the stage which covered 177km from Fuente del Maestre. This win marks Bittner’s first Grand Tour stage victory.

Primoz Roglic, who retained the race leader’s red jersey, finished with the main group. Roglic’s strong performance maintains his lead in the general classification with a total time of 18 hours, 58 minutes and 36 seconds. Despite not winning the stage, Van Aert holds on to the green points jersey. The stage, which featured a flat route, saw Bittner’s sprinting prowess shine through as he crossed the line just ahead of Van Aert.

The next stage, stage six, promises to be more challenging with a 185.5km mountainous route from Jerez de la Frontera to Yunquera, which will test the riders further. In the general classification, Joao Almeida is second, trailing Roglic by 8 seconds while Enric Mas is third, 32 seconds behind. Other notable standings include Antonio Tiberi in fourth and Lennert van Eetvelt in fifth.

The top ten also includes Felix Gall, Brandon McNulty, Mattias Skjelmose, Mikel Landa and Aleksandr Vlasov, all within a minute of the leader.

Stage Five Results:
1. Pavel Bittner (Cze/DSM-Firmenich-PostNL) – 4hrs 25mins 28secs
2. Wout van Aert (Bel/Team Jumbo Visma) – Same time
3. Kaden Groves (Aus/Alpecin-Deceuninck)

General Classification:
1. Primoz Roglic (Slo/Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) – 18hrs 58mins 36secs
2. Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) – +8secs
3. Enric Mas (Spa/Movistar) – +32secs