Girmay off the mark for NSN in fierce Volta Comunitat Valenciana opener

Biniam Girmay got off to a winning start for NSN Cycling Team after he held off Arne Marit (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) to win a reduced bunch sprint on stage 1 of the Volta Comunitat Valenciana in Torreblanca.

The stage was widely expected to finish in a sprint, but it proved rather more dramatic than anticipated, with Remco Evenepoel’s Red Bull squad splitting the peloton into shards on the day’s lone climb, the Puerto Los Madroños.

Their effort saw four Red Bull riders in a group of 18 riders over the other side, with Giulio Pellizzari pressing clear alone with 18km to go.

The Italian maintained a 20-second advantage deep into the finale, even when the chasing group swelled to 50 or so riders, and he was only swept up beneath the flamme rouge.

Ben Turner (Ineos) opened the sprint with a determined effort from distance, but he was overhauled by Girmay within sight of the line. Girmay’s former teammate Marit was closing rapidly, but the Eritrean held him off to claim his first win since the 2024 Tour de France.

With Girmay and Mads Pedersen in the field, stage 1 of the Volta Comunitat Valenciana was always likely to produce a bunch sprint. That didn’t dissuade a group of four riders escaping in the opening kilometres, but Danny van der Tuuk (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Diego Pablo Sevilla (Polti-VisitMalta), Matteo Regnanti (Solution Tech-Nippo) and Adam Lewis (APS Pro Cycling) knew the odds were firmly stacked against them.

The quartet quickly established a lead of two minutes over the peloton, but Lidl-Trek were reluctant to allow them to gain much more. That gap stayed more or less stable en route to the day’s lone classified climb, the category 3 Puerto Los Madroños, which came with just under 35km to go.

Red Bull would seize control of the race over the top of the climb, splintering the peloton with their forcing. That briefly left just 18 riders at the front, including Evenepoel and three of his teammates, but with João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Pedersen strikingly absent. It later emerged that Pedersen had crashed and abandoned the race.

Evenepoel’s guard duly piled on the pressure, but once it became apparent that they would not enjoy much by way of collaboration, Pellizzari seized the opportunity to go on the offensive, pressing clear with a shade under 19km to go.

The Italian quickly opened a 20-second lead, while the chasing group swelled to 50 or so riders – now including Almeida – with NSN and Ineos leading the chase on behalf of Girmay and Ben Turner. 

Girmay was the quickest in the ensuing sprint, which played out without Pedersen, and he came home ahead of Marit and Giovanni Lonardi (Polti-VisitMalta).

The Eritrean wears yellow in the stage 2 time trial from Carlet to Alginet. Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) will be the overwhelming favourite to win the stage and move into the overall lead, while João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) will also expect to be to the fore in the 17km test.