MADRID, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) -- Remco Evenepoel of Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl strengthened his grip on the Vuelta a Espana cycle race with another astonishing 10th stage performance on Tuesday.
The Belgian won the 30.9-kilometer time trial between Elche and Alicante in southeast Spain in a time of 33 minutes and 18 seconds, with an average speed of 55.7 kilometers per hour.
He finished 48 seconds ahead of Jumbo Visma's Primoz Roglic, after the Slovenian reigning champion produced a good ride on the almost pan-flat course to move into second place overall, all be it two minutes and 41 seconds behind Evenepoel.
Enric Mas, who had started the day in second place, finished 10th on the day and slips to third in the general classification, 22 seconds behind Roglic, although the climber commented afterward that he was relatively content with his performance in what is not his strongest discipline.
Evenepoel had been the favorite for the stage and lived up to expectations, especially in the closing kilometers when he made his power count. He even entered the closing straight with Mas in his sights, banishing worries that he could suffer in the hot and humid conditions.
The heat will be a factor in the coming days of the race, although there probably won't be any changes to the overall standings on Wednesday's stage 11, which is a flat 191 kilometers from ElPozo Alimentacion in the region of Murcia to Cabo de Gata, and which should finish in a bunch sprint. ■
