'I got help from Visma guys' - Unexpected allies keep Træen in red at the Vuelta
The first chapter of the 2025 Vuelta has drawn to a close, and as the teams and riders take stock to assess the state of play, Torstein Træen sits pretty at the top of the standings
The surprise leader of the Vuelta, Torstein Træen (Bahrain-Victorious), will be able to enjoy the first rest day as race leader after successfully defending his red jersey on stage 9’s summit finish to Valdezcaray.
After navigating his first summit finish on stage 7 to Cerler, the Norwegian dug deep on Sunday’s rain-soaked finish to seal at least two more days in red.
Things were in the balance when Jonas Vingegaard romped clear on the climb to Valdezcaray to the stage win, but Træen did enough to ensure the Dane didn’t eat into all of his 2:33 advantage from the start of the day.
“At the end of the climb, I was thinking I would not be in the red jersey, so I’m obviously quite happy that I got some help and managed to hold on. I didn’t expect [Jonas Vingegaard] to be that fast. He went really fast when he attacked, and then it was just about surviving basically,” said Træen after the stage.
In the end, Træen came in 17th on the day in the main group of GC contenders, 1:46 behind Vingegaard, and with the bonus seconds in play, the advantage was reduced to 37 seconds.
With Vingegaard ahead soloing to the victory, Træen was surprised to see support in the chase from some of the Dane's Visma | Lease a Bike teammates, and modestly suggested that perhaps the Dutch team didn't want the red jersey yet.
"At one point, I got help from two Visma guys. So it felt a bit like maybe they didn’t want Jonas to have the jersey yet," said Træen, who deservedly held onto the race lead through his gritty performance, despite what his modesty may suggest.
Not only was Træen relieved to hold onto red, but the 30-year-old also indicated that he is going to celebrate with a nice meal tonight, stating, “Now I’m looking forward to the burger tonight!”
