Photo by Plomi
Of the three La Vuelta winners who have announced their participation this year, Fabio Aru is one of the two, along with Primoz Roglic, to have worn the leader’s jersey of the three Grand Tours. The third, Alejandro Valverde only participated once in the Giro d’Italia where he won a stage and finished on the podium (3rd in 2016) but without donning the pink tunic. The Italian’s second place in the Tour de Burgos is a sign of his return to the forefront, at the age of 31.
La Vuelta 2015 is remembered for its turnaround on the eve of the finish. An edition marked by a duel of two athletes with opposing physique – the great roller Tom Dumoulin, six days with La Roja, against the little beetle Esteban Chaves – who eventually saw the main prize snatched away from them by Fabio Aru, predestined champion whose trajectory recalled Vincenzo Nibali: “Il Cavaliere dei 4 mori” (the knight of the 4 Moors) is from an island, Sardinia, as “the shark” got his nickname from the Strait of Messina, between his native Sicily and mainland Italy, and, above all, the two men registered La Vuelta as the first Grand Tour in their winning records (Nibali five years before Aru).
Wearing the pink Giro jersey in 2015 (one day), Aru, winner of a 2017 Tour de France stage at La Planche des Belles Filles like Nibali in 2014, remains the only one to have dispossessed the great Chris Froome and his untouchable Team Sky of the yellow jersey, if only for two days. It also happened in 2017, thanks to a steep finale towards Peyragudes. Aru loves the Pyrenees. He has a soft spot for Spain and its identity. He is a man of letters, who studied in classical high school. He knows the history and the Mediterranean culture that connects Sardinia to Catalonia. The Catalan-inspired flag still flies in Alghero, in the northwest of the island.
The start of his history with La Vuelta dates back to a stage victory on September 3, 2014, in San Miguel de Aralar (stage 11). He put on the ropes the leader of the event, Alberto Contador, and the impressive parterre of favorites then composed of Chris Froome, Alejandro Valverde and Joaquim „Purito“ Rodriguez, but no longer Nairo Quintana, forced to retire on that day, a stone’s throw away from his European home in Pamplona (winner of the Giro that year, he was racing at Movistar). In the commentary, Pedro Delgado had let out a cry of surprise tinged with compliments when the young Italian, 24 years old at the time, revealed to the general public three months earlier by his stage victory at Plan di Montecampione on the Giro, had accelerated 2 km from the top of the steep Navarre ascent. He made his first real attack 1.5 km from the goal, still with Contador on the lookout, and with 400 m of climbing to go, he soared on his own to take his first victory outside of Italy.
„Did you see who I beat?“ Fabio Aru marvelled as he got off his bike. Indeed, the standings behind him were full of stars: 2nd Alejandro Valverde, 3rd Joaquim ‘Purito’ Rodriguez, 4th Alberto Contador, 5th Chris Froome, 6th Rigoberto Uran, 7th Samuel Sanchez and 8th Dan Martin! „Aru reminds me of myself when I was young“, Alberto Contador said as he was about to win his third and final La Vuelta. „He has the same pedal stroke and the same way of riding. The same change of pace on the hill as well. And he’s a brave one! He will be the star of the next few years.“ Four days earlier, Contador had turned to Aru within the peloton: „How are you? “ The Italian believed the Madrileño was speaking to their mutual friend Paolo Tiralongo. „Can you imagine, Paolo, he was talking to me!“, Aru marvelled.
This victory would be followed with more success a week later, when Aru won again, at Monte Castrove in Meis (stage 18), before completing the Spanish Grand Tour in fifth position in the final standings established at… Santiago de Compostela – a sign of fate for his return to La Vuelta 21, also finishing in the emblematic Galician city? After his triumph in 2015, Fabio Aru finished 13th in La Vuelta 17, a race he had approached tired after his very fine Tour de France, then 23rd in 2018. We saw him cry at a stage start in 2019 before his abandonment (13th stage) because he could not express his talents. He suffered from back pain and experienced various health concerns.
„It’s a pleasure to see him come back to form just before La Vuelta“, general manager Javier Guillén rejoices, „because Fabio Aru has left us fond memories when he was one of the great protagonists. As Alberto Contador said, he is a brave man. In full possession of his means, he offers spectacular cycling. He is completely in the spirit of La Vuelta.“
