Frederico Figueiredo (General-Tavira-Maria Nova Hotel Tuna) won, this Sunday, September 20, the 43rd Torres Vedras International Grand Prix – Joaquim Agostinho Trophy, imposing himself on the second stage (145,2 kilometers), between Turcifal and the Carvoeira Wind Farm.
The General-Tavira-Maria Nova Hotel tuna prepared perfectly the attack on the yellow jersey. During most of the trip, he put César Martingil, who started the stage less than a minute before the general command, on the run. Having canceled the escape, he attacked Alejandro Marque, at the beginning of the climb to the finish line.
This hardening of the race left the rivals more undercapitalized to respond to the final attack by Frederico Figueiredo, who stood out, in the final kilometer, along with Luís Gomes (Kelly/Simoldes/UDO) and the yellow jersey Luís Mendonça (Efapel).
The first overall went to shock, but could not stand the pace. Tied in time at the start of the journey, it would be the final end of the stage to decide the winner of the competition. Frederico Figueiredo got the better of him, crossing the line with a 1 second advantage over Luís Gomes and 13 seconds ahead of Luís Mendonça.
The result in the stage translated into a modified final overall. Frederico Figueiredo won the 2020 edition of the Joaquim Agostinho Trophy. Luís Gomes was at 5 seconds and Luís Mendonça closed the podium, at 8 seconds.
Frederico Figueiredo was a happy man, after a special race outcome: he raised his arms for the first time as a professional cyclist.
“It's a victory I've been waiting for for a long time, my first as a professional cyclist, not least in a race I've been in the discussion many times before. I am extremely happy. It is a triumph to enjoy and to dedicate to my son, who will be born in November. I just thought about it on the finish line», says the winner of the race.
The cyclist from Tavira's team explains the importance of collective work for the final result: «we worked to bring the race always at a high pace, so that the opponents would arrive 'fair' to the final part. This happened and I was fortunate not to have bad luck like those who have affected me».
The W52-FC Porto collective, which anticipated itself as the protagonist, for starting the race with two men in the top three of the general classification, was unable to interfere in the discussion of the race. A fall in the Algarve João Rodrigues, which only resulted in bruises, knocked Porto's plans to the ground.
Luís Mendonça won the classification by points, Pablo Guerrero (Burgos-BH) was the king of climbers, Miguel Salgueiro (LA Alumínios-LA Sport) won flying goals and Gonçalo Carvalho, from Rádio Popular-Boavista, was named the best youngster . Boavistas triumphed by teams.
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