Tour of Valencia 2024 Route stage 5: Bétera

Tour of Valencia 2024 Route stage 5: Bétera - Valencia

Sunday 4 February - The Tour of Valencia bids goodbye with a 93 kilometres long race between Bétera and Valencia. It's virtually a carbon copy of last year's final stage, in which Rui Costa turned the GC upside down.

Just like last year, the final stage takes in two climbs. The Alto de L’Oronet rises for 4.2 kilometres at 4.4%, while Port del Garbí is something else entirely. The climb is also known as La Frontera and it’s a tough test of 5.4 kilometres with an average gradient of 8.9%. The steepest parts ramp up to 18%, while the summit is crested with 45 kilometres left to race.

The final stage of the Tour of Valencia used to be rather predictable, virtually always with a sprint outcome, but last year’s finale brought spectacle from La Frontera onwards. Samuele Battistella was the only survivor of the breakaway when Aleksandr Vlasov initiated a chase group. Giulio Ciccone, Tao Geoghegan Hart, Thymen Arensman and Marc Soler were the only riders who were able to match his moves, while Pello Bilbao, Brandon McNulty and Rui Costa were able to latch on shortly after the descent. The nine held off a chase group and seemed to be racing for the win.

But that did not happen. Arensman and Costa attacked inside the last kilometres and instead of chasing, the others started looking at each other. Eventually, the Dutchman and Portugese sprinted for the win with the former World Champion just a wee bit faster. He also took the GC, as race leader Ciccone crossed the line 21 seconds later and dropped to second place.

The first three riders on the line gain time bonuses of 10, 6 and 4 seconds, while the intermediate sprint comes with 3, 2 and 1 seconds.

Another interesting read: final GC + results 5th stage 2024 Tour of Valencia.