Johannessen honours King Harald V at Vuelta after his death: ‘We will ride for him’

Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) says he and his compatriots will ride stage 7 of the Vuelta a España in memory of King Harald V, who died on Friday morning aged 89. 

The palace in Oslo announced that the king died peacefully at 06:35 local time at Oslo University Hospital after being treated for a rare blood condition.

Johannessen, who had previously met Harald, told TV2 Sport that the king’s passion for sport made the news particularly poignant to him.

“It’s special that he has been so interested in sports, so we ride a little in his spirit today,” Johannessen said. 

“We want to honour him in the best possible way by starting and doing the absolute best we can today,” he added.

The Norwegian riders will wear mourning bands and observe a minute’s silence before the start. 

“I feel that’s the right thing to do. It can give us something extra today. We will ride for him.”

On the road, Johannessen is hoping that a breakaway will be given an opportunity to shine after five completed stages, with only two riders tasting victory so far: Matthew Brennan (2) and Tadej Pogačar (3). 

The 27-year-old will have more freedom as he is not involved in the GC contest, sitting 27th in the GC, 21:16 behind the race leader Pogačar. 

Johannessen is yet to win a Grand Tour stage, but came close on multiple occasions at the Tour de France in July, featuring in five breakaways, and sprinting to second on stage 9 behind Mathieu van der Poel.

Uno-X Mobility won a stage at the Giro d'Italia this year from the breakaway with Fredrik Dversnes, before Søren Wærenskjold sprinted to victory in the fastest stage in Tour history in July. 

Now, the Norwegian team will be looking to land their first Vuelta stage and will have added motivation.