The 79th Vuelta finished in a blaze of glory on Sunday for the Groupama-FDJ cycling team. Always up there but never rewarded on the major events, Stefan Küng finally claimed his first victory in a Grand Tour on the closing time trial in Madrid. Way above the rest of the competition, the former double European champion thus broke the curse, and concluded in the best possible way a very convincing Vuelta a España for the team. David Gaudu eventually took sixth place overall, but most importantly, the Frenchman got back the confidence and the level he had been looking for a long time. The end of an important Grand Tour in all respects.
On Sunday, there were only 24.6 kilometres left to complete the Vuelta. But these 24.6 kilometres, in the streets of Madrid, were extremely important for Stefan Küng. After having already taken three top-5 finishes during the Spanish Grand Tour, the Swiss rider set off at 18:06 for first place, and nothing else. “For a week, we asked him to go a bit easier on the stages, to save as much energy as possible because we knew that this time suited him perfectly,” Thierry Bricaud explained. “But he therefore needed to have the right legs. In the previous 48 hours, he rode more conservatively with the aim of leaving it all on the road today.” “During the whole Vuelta, I tried to win a road stage, I was very active, and I spent a lot of energy,” Stefan added. “I knew that there were two interesting stages for me in the last week, but for the other ones, I tried to take it as easy as possible, especially the last two days.” Fully in shape on Sunday, Stefan Küng started like a cannonball, and beat the best mark by twenty seconds at the first intermediate check. “I knew that it was important to start really fast on this course because the second part was very fast and it would be difficult to make the difference”, he said. “I went out hard, and I can tell you that when you go out hard, you have to suffer so much, but I did not want to have any regrets at the finish line. I really wanted that win.”
“I’ve been chasing it for so long”, Stefan Küng
The Swiss rider’s momentum did not slow down, and he reached the second intermediate check with a forty-second lead, which was approximately also the gap at the finish: “I said to myself: you can’t blow up, you can’t blow up, it’s the end of your Grand Tour, don’t blow up! I just had to push through the pain, that’s what I did”. After outclassing the best time trial specialists, Stefan Küng only had to pay attention to the GC riders, especially Primoz Roglic. Yet, the Slovenian was unable to really come close to his performance. At around 7:30 p.m., “King Küng” officially became the stage winner; a first time for him in a three-week race. “Finally. It’s amazing,” he said with a big smile. “I’ve been chasing it for so long. I’m so happy to have won my first Grand Tour stage. It’s been a long time coming. I had to fight for it, I came close so many times, so it’s a relief to finally get it. I was struggling all summer. I got sick before the Tour de Suisse, during the Tour, at the Olympics. I just wanted to have a good feeling again in the race, and that’s what happened on this Vuelta. And then, the stronger you are, the less you suffer in the race, and the fresher you are for the time trial on the last day!”
“The stars were aligned”, Thierry Bricaud
Stefan Küng’s professionalism finally paid off, and his happiness was shared by the entire Groupama-FDJ cycling team, in Madrid and elsewhere. “The stars were aligned today for him,” said Thierry Bricaud. “He has often been unlucky, for a few seconds or a few details. Tonight, he has a Grand Tour time trial on his prize list, and that’s not insignificant. Everyone is happy for him, first of all because of the person he is. He is appreciated and loved in the team. We know that he is rarely rewarded at his true worth, because he is someone who puts a lot of commitment into everything he does. Finally, it is also very important to win after three weeks on a time trial with the goals coming up. We feel that he is calm and very motivated.” Stefan Küng added: “It’s always better to win with a half-minute gap, it shows that you really were the best and that it was not a coincidence. It finally rewards all the work we did with the team and with Wilier to develop this new bike. We worked very hard, and I also have always worked hard to try to get the most out of myself. I want to say a big thank you to the team for their support throughout these last years. They have always believed in me, it’s nice to pay them back”.
“I have rarely had so much fun,” David Gaudu
After three weeks of efforts, this icing on the cake was all the more delicious on Sunday because of the great cake that was David Gaudu’s last month of racing. The Frenchman eventually placed sixth overall after he bravely but unsuccessfully fought to keep his top-5 against Mathias Skjelmose. “He did everything he could to keep his fifth place, but that’s not the most important,” said Thierry. “The most important thing is that David is back, and that’s what we wanted above all else. He’s really back, because he regained a lot of confidence and took his place back in the international peloton. That will boost him for the rest of his career, but also for the great end of the season that’s coming up.” “If I had been told that I would finish sixth before the Vuelta, I think a lot of people would have signed, whether it was me, the team or the fans,” added the Breton. “Whether I’m fifth or sixth, my Vuelta was a success. I got my legs back, I scored results on summit finishes, and I had a lot of fun. I think I’ve rarely had as much fun as I have in the last three weeks. I’d been looking for that feeling of being with the best in the climbs for so long. It’s almost a relief because I’ve been through some very difficult times for a year and a half. This Vuelta will do me a lot of good.”
The Frenchman will now set his sights on the Italian races while his Swiss teammate will line up with ambition for the European and World time trial Championships. In any case, a very successful Vuelta came to an end for the team on Sunday. “The goal was to go for the top 10 with David, and to go for a stage victory,” Thierry said. “We had to wait until the last day, but it doesn’t matter! It’s also amazing to finish like this, and I always had in mind that we could end the Vuelta with a victory. We knew that this time trial could reward the team and Stefan. Above all, a Grand Tour is a real human adventure, and we experienced a month with lots of smiles and professionalism. Then, when it moreover ends with a win, it is all the more beautiful for the staff and the riders.”
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