British rider Josh Tarling (Netcompany Ineos) has abandoned the Vuelta a España during stage 6. The Welshman had started on Thursday in Alcossebre, before the race's live ticker announced him as a DNF with over 120km still to race.
The Netcompany-Ineos rider's brother, Finlay Tarling, died during the recent Volta a Portugal. Tarling took the start in Monaco on August 22 having "chosen to do so in honour of his brother Fin, with the full support of his family, surrounded by a team who have been incredibly supportive of whatever decision he made," said his parents on Instagram.
Despite that, Tarling began the race in fine style, setting one of the fastest times in the opening stage time trial in Monaco, eventually finishing third, four seconds behind Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-ADQ).
Since that point, the former European and British time trial champion has worked as a domestique for the team, naturally dropping down the general classification standings.
Tarling signed on for Thursday’s sixth stage between Alcossebre and Castelló and started, but was reported as climbing off with 123 of the day’s 177.4km remaining.
No reason has yet been given for the abandonment, the team only updating their social media, saying, "Josh Tarling's brave La Vuelta has come to an end and he's decided to stop. We couldn't be prouder."
The cycling world has experienced an outpouring of emotion and support since Finlay’s death on August 14th, and a fundraising page to support young Welsh cyclists has been established. You can contribute to the fundraiser here.
More to follow...
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