Team Emirates’ Oliveira aces Portuguese time trial c’ships

DUBAI: UAE Team Emirates dominated the Portuguese time trial championships, held in Paredes with success for Ivo Oliveira who won the gold medal.

Oliveira was able to cover the 18.1 km circuit in 23’45”, at an average of 45.726 km / h. Runner-up position went to Rui Costa, only 9 slower than his young teammate.

For Ivo Oliveira this is his first victory as a professional, a success that topped off a great day for UAE Team Emirates, already celebrating ater the success of Davide Formolo in the third stage of the Criterium del Dauphiné.

Oliveira said ater winning “I had great legs today, I felt it immediately. I arrived from the Tour de Pologne, Where I pulled out before the last stage as a precaution, since I had felt discomfort in a tendon in my leg.

“During the week I was calm, I rested and recovered. Yesterday I did a good training session and immediately I felt I was in excellent condition, and I was pleasantly surprised that it was confirmed today.

“I went really hard, when I completed my ride I saw that I had the best time so I waited for everyone else to finish and then celebrated. It is my first victory, I am very satisfied and really happy to be able to wear the national champion jersey in all the time trials”.

Meanwhile, Tour de France champion Egan Bernal has been ruled out the rest of the Criterium du Dauphine with a back issue, his team-mate Geraint Thomas said ahead of Saturday’s penultimate stage.

Oufit leader Bernal, 23, was in seventh place trailing Dauphine leader Primoz Roglic by 31 seconds two weeks before the start of this year’s Tour which starts on August 29.

“He doesn’t start today. He’s got a bit of a bad back and the best thing for him is to just take it easy,” 2018 Tour winner Thomas said.

“It’s such a short turn around to the Tour that it’s important he gets it 100 per cent right and be good then. I don’t think it’s a major issue, it’s just beter to be on the side of caution,” he added.

The Dauphine’s fourth day heads 153.5km from Ugine to Megeve through the Alps with Jumbo-visma’s Roglic holding a 14 seconds lead over second-placed Frenchman and fellow Tour hopeful Thibaut Pinot.

Meanwhile, Ater narrowly missing out on a victory at Strade Bianche, UAE Team Emirates’ Davide Formolo took his first win of the season with a 60km solo atack in stage 3 of the Criterium du Dauphine. The Italian national champion was able to make the early breakaway with a small but strong contingent of riders who worked together to keep the peloton at bay over a series of challenging climbs.