Third stage of Spanish Vuelta stopped because of hail and no winner declared

GRUISSAN, France (AP) — The third stage of the Vuelta a Espana ended without a winner after being halted because of hail on Tuesday.

Riders started taking shelter in shops and restaurants by the road with about 15 kilometers (nine miles) to go on the difficult 174-kilometer (108-mile) route that was set to finish in the French Pyrenees.

Organizers neutralized the race as conditions became dangerous with ice on the road and the threat of lightning. Organizers eventually suspended the stage and declared no winner.

“For the security of the riders, stage three has been canceled due to hail and severe weather,” race organizers said. “There will be no winner and no podium ceremony.”

The riders started communicating and asking each other to slow down when the hail began.

Mats Wenzel of Equipo Kern Pharm and Lorenzo Fortunato of XDS Astana were on a breakaway at the time the race was called off.

Heavy rain hit the peloton with about 25 kilometers (15 miles) to go in the stage.

Tadej Pogačar, the Tour de France winner seeking a personal sweep of the Grand Tour races, remained the race leader after three stages. The Slovenian from UAE Team Emirates leads the general classification by nine seconds from Wout van Aert, with Matthew Brennan another second behind in third.

Tuesday’s 105-kilometer (65-mile) stage will go through the Andorran mountains. The short but tough route will feature three climbs where the top contenders are expected to separate themselves from the pack.

The Vuelta finishes in the southern Spanish city of Granada on Sept. 13.

Pogačar’s quest

Pogačar made his Grand Tour debut at the Vuelta in 2019, winning three stages and finishing third. He did not race in the Vuelta again until this year.

He won the Tour de France for a third straight time and a record-tying fifth overall in July. His Giro d’Italia win in 2024 puts him in position to become the ninth male rider to win all three Grand Tours after Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, Jacques Anquetil, Felice Gimondi, Alberto Contador, Chris Froome, Vincenzo Nibali and Jonas Vingegaard.

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