Megias Holds On To Top 15th Position at Tour of California
20 May 2016
Race: Amgen Tour of California, Stage 5
Start/Finish: Lodi/South Lake Tahoe, California, USA
Distance: 131.7 miles, 212 kilometers
South Lake Tahoe, California — Team Novo Nordisk’s Javier Megias remains 14th overall following Stage 5 of the Amgen Tour of California.
Thursday’s stage was nearly entirely uphill and featured two categorized climbs before a summit finish into South Lake Tahoe. The 131.1-mile day began with a large group of 18 riders escaping. As the front group reached the summit of the first categorized climb, Tom Skujins (Cannondale Pro Cycling) and Adam de Vos (Rally Cycling) attacked the break. This duo and the chase group came back together on the descent of the second categorized climb. Skujins attacked again, and only De Vos and Xabier Zandio (Team Sky) could grab his wheel. The trio worked well together until the finish and Skujins powered to the win. Megias finished in the first chase group, 43 seconds back. Julian Alaphilippe (Etixx-Quick Step) remains in the overall race lead with Megias in 14th place, 1:39 behind Alaphilippe.
“While we didn’t have anyone in the breakaway today, that actually worked out really well for me,” Megias said. “My teammates were great protecting me and getting me bottles. The day went really smoothly and it wasn’t until the final climb into Tahoe when things got tough. It was super windy and the pace really picked up to catch the break but I felt good.”
Team Novo Nordisk continues racing at the Amgen Tour of California on Friday with Stage 6, a 12.6-mile (20.3-kilometer) out-and-back individual time trial in Folsom.
Results:
- 1st: Tom Skujins (Cannondale Pro Cycling): 5:54:45
- 2nd: Adam de Vos (Rally Cycling): same time as Skujins
- 3rd: Xabier Zandio (Team Sky): 0:08 behind Skujins
Team Novo Nordisk Results:
- Javier Megias: 22nd: 0:43 behind Skujins
- Joonas Henttala: 55th: 1:59 behind Skujins
- David Lozano: 92nd: 13:29 behind Skujins
- Andrea Peron: 101st: 13:29 behind Skujins
- Martijn Verschoor: 120th: 13:29 behind Skujins
- Chris Williams: 129th: 17:15 behind Skujins
- Charles Planet: 133re: 17:15 behind Skujins
- Stephen Clancy: Did not finish