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Laura Weislo

Tour Colombia: Harold Tejada wins stage 2 in kick to line ahead of Piccolo and Sevilla

Tour Colombia 2024: Harold Tejada of Astana Qazaqstan wins stage 2 (Image credit: Photo by Luis Acosta / AFP / Getty Images)
Harold Tejada of Astana Qazaqstan reacts to winning his first pro race on stage 2 at Tour Colombia (Image credit: Luis Acosta / AFP /Getty Images)
Edgar Andres Pinzon, Andrea Piccolo and Javier Ernesto Jamaica in the breakaway (Image credit: Getty Images)
Mounir El Azhari (Sidi Ali Unlock Team) leads the early breakaway (Image credit: Maximiliano Blanco/Getty Images)
The day's breakaway (Image credit: Getty Images)
Richard Carapaz in the peloton (Image credit: Maximiliano Blanco/Getty Images)
Colombia's cyclist Rigoberto Uran (C) competes during the second stage of the Tour Colombia (Image credit: Getty Images)
Harold Tejada of Astana Qazaqstan Team won stage 2 of Tour Colombia (Image credit: Maximiliano Blanco/Getty Images)
Stage 2 of Tour Colombia (Image credit: Getty Images)
Richard Carapaz and Esteban Chavez (Image credit: Getty Images)
Race leader Fernando Gaviria (Image credit: Getty Images)
Vinicius Rangel leads the bunch (Image credit: Getty Images)
Vinicius Rangel (Movistar) at the front of the peloton (Image credit: Maximiliano Blanco/Getty Images)
Nairo Quintana (Movistar) (Image credit: Getty Images)
Stage 2 of Tour Colombia (Image credit: Getty Images)
Stage 2 of Tour Colombia (Image credit: Maximiliano Blanco/Getty Images)
Rigoberto Uran signs autographs (Image credit: Maximiliano Blanco/Getty Images)
A band at the start of stage 2 (Image credit: Maximiliano Blanco/Getty Images)

Harold Tejada (Astana Qazaqstan) claimed his first professional victory in a thrilling finale on stage 2 of the Tour Colombia. The Colombian out-sprinted Andrea Piccolo (EF Education-EasyPost) and Óscar Sevilla (Medellín) in a hotly-contested finish between the remnants of the day's breakaway.

Sevilla was away with Robinson Chalapud (Team Banco Guayaquil-Bianchi) heading into the final 2km but the group with Tejada and Piccolo caught them as their gap to the chasing peloton dipped below the minute mark.

Tejada inherits the yellow leader's jersey from compatriot Fernando Gaviria (Movistar), winner of the opening stage.

"It's my first professional win and with my WorldTour team, it’s very emotional," Tejada said. 

"It wasn’t in the plan to get in the break. The truth is, I tried to save myself a bit throughout the day because from the experience I've picked up in Europe, I learned that you need to save your energy for the key moments. 

"Everything went perfectly. It wasn’t easy, but winning like that is something special. I’d been waiting for it for a long time. In the end, the team always wants results. Today, I woke up the desire to win and I want to win on the Alto del Vino as well. All victories are welcome."

How it unfolded

For the second successive day, the Tour Colombia peloton was flagged away amid raucous crowds in the heart of Nairo Quintana country in Paipa. His Movistar teammate Fernando Gaviria set out in the yellow jersey, but the fast man was already resigned to losing the garment on the rugged run north to Santa Rose de Viterbo.

It took some time for the first break of the day to form, with Efrén Santos (Canel´s Java), Esteban Villarreal (Selección de Ecuador), Javier Jamaica (Team Medellín-EPM), Bernardo Suaza (Petrolike), Daniel Méndez (Nu Colombia) and Freddy Ávila (Colombia Potencia de la Vida-Strongman) eventually forging clear after almost an hour of racing.

The sextet held a lead of two minutes as they entered the final 100km, but the race would take on a different guise shortly afterwards, when the peloton splintered into echelons on an exposed section of road between the twin ascents of the Alto Moral. By the second time up the climb, a group of 17 riders had formed at the front, and they continued to press home their advantage over the other side.

Dangermen Harold Tejada (Astana-Qazaqstan), Óscar Sevilla (Team Medellín), Rodrigo Contreras (NU Colombia) and Andrea Piccolo (EF Education-EasyPost) were all aboard the move, which still had 2:30 in hand as they entered the final 20km.

The move also contained Aaron Van Der Beken (Bingoal WB), Javier Jamaica (Team Medellín), Róbinson Chalapud (Banco Guayaquil), Efren Santos (Canel's-Java), Jose Muñíz (Petrolike), Yeison Reyes (Team Sistecrédito), Santiago Gómez (Team Sistecrédito), Andrés Pinzón (GW Erco SHIMANO), Brandon Rojas (GW Erco SHIMANO), César Guavita (Colombia Potencia De Vida), Hugo Rodríguez (Colombia), Juan Diego Alba (Colombia) and Bayron Guamá (Ecuador).

While favourites like Richard Carapaz and Egan Bernal were represented by teammates in the move, Movistar were conspicuous by their absence. It fell upon Quintana and Iván Sosa’s squad to perform the bulk of the chasing on the run-in to the Alto Malterias, which provided an obvious platform for late attacks.

Results

Results powered by FirstCycling

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