Almeida outguns Vingegaard on the brutal Alto de Angliru
Portugal’s Joao Almeida of UAE Team Emirates-XRG delivered a stunning performance to claim victory on the brutal 13th stage of the Vuelta a Espana, outpacing overall leader Jonas Vingegaard in a dramatic finish at the Alto de Angliru.
The fiercely contested mountain stage was marked not only by intense competition but also by interruptions caused by pro-Palestinian protests.
With less than six kilometers remaining to the summit, Almeida surged ahead of teammate Felix Grossschartner and took the race lead. The Portuguese rider and Vingegaard, who currently sits atop the general classification, broke away from contenders Jai Hindley and Sepp Kuss with three kilometers left, engaging in a tense battle to the finish on one of cycling’s toughest ascents. Almeida’s first stage win at the Vuelta earned him crucial bonus seconds, closing the gap to Vingegaard to just 46 seconds overall.
“This is a special one, I still don’t believe it,” Almeida said after crossing the line. “I just put my pace from the bottom and did my best. Jonas was always on my wheel. We were both on the limit, and I was waiting for his attack anytime. I think this is the hardest climb in the world, it’s crazy, I’m really sore.”
Despite finishing seventh on the stage, Great Britain’s Tom Pidcock holds third place in the overall rankings, now two minutes and 18 seconds behind Vingegaard. Jai Hindley’s third-place stage finish keeps him fourth overall.
The race was disrupted briefly before the climb by protesters waving Palestinian flags, affecting leading riders Jefferson Cepeda, Bob Jungels, and Nico Vinokurov. The stoppage lasted only seconds before security intervened. Vinokurov, who had established a three-minute lead before the disruption, noted, “We were slowed down a bit by a demonstration during the race, but that didn’t change anything — we knew we would be caught by the best.”
This is the second protest-related disruption in the Vuelta this week, following the cancellation of stage 11’s winner due to similar demonstrations. The Asturias government chose to boycott Friday’s stage, urging Israel-Premier Tech — the team owned by Israeli-Canadian Sylvan Adams — to withdraw from the race amid ongoing conflict in Gaza.
Gimena Llamedo, vice-president of Asturias, expressed, “It would be best for everyone if Israel-Premier Tech withdrew. We don’t have the capacity to prevent your participation, but we want to express our disagreement. We must not be indifferent to what is happening in Gaza. It is a matter of conscience, of humanity.”
Israel-Premier Tech rejected calls to pull out, warning it would set a dangerous precedent in cycling. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the team on social media for standing firm against intimidation.
The Vuelta continues with two more stages in Asturias this weekend, as athletes and organizers navigate both fierce competition and complex social tensions.
Stage 13 Top 10
1 Almeida João UAE Team Emirates-XRG 180 04:54:15
2 Vingegaard Jonas Team Visma | Lease a Bike 130 + 00
3 Hindley Jai Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe 95 + 28
4 Kuss Sepp Team Visma | Lease a Bike 80 + 30
5 Gall Felix Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team 60 + 52
6 Pellizzari Giulio Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe 45 + 01:11
7 Pidcock Tom Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team 40 + 01:16
8 Riccitello Matthew Israel-Premier Tech 35 + 01:16
9 Ciccone Giulio Lidl-Trek 30 + 02:15
10 Balderstone Abel Caja Rural-Seguros RGA 25 + 03:06
GC after Stage 13
1 Vingegaard Jonas Team Visma | Lease a Bike 49:30:54
2 Almeida João UAE Team Emirates-XRG + 46
3 Pidcock Tom Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team + 02:18
4 Hindley Jai Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe + 03:00
5 Gall Felix Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team + 03:15
6 Pellizzari Giulio Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe + 04:01
7 Riccitello Matthew Israel-Premier Tech + 04:33
8 Ciccone Giulio Lidl-Trek + 04:54
9 Træen Torstein Bahrain Victorious + 05:21
10 Kuss Sepp Team Visma | Lease a Bike + 05:26