Tadej Pogacar wins Vuelta a Espana opener to claim red jersey

Tadej Pogacar secured an emphatic win in the opening individual time trial of the Vuelta a Espana, claiming the leader's red jersey on Saturday. The Slovenian cyclist, who is aiming for a career Grand Tour treble at the Vuelta, clocked 10 minutes and 57 seconds for the 9.4-kilometre race through Monaco, his hometown. Pogacar edged out Britain's Ethan Hayter by a whisker, with the Briton finishing a fraction of a second behind.

Hong Kong-born Joshua Tarling, who lost his younger brother Finlay in a racing accident earlier this week, secured the third place position, four seconds behind the top two. Pogacar, who won the Tour de France for the fifth time earlier this year and claims the Giro d'Italia title in 2024, is expected to don the red jersey again in Granada on September 13.

Achieving a Vuelta victory would make Pogacar only the fourth rider to complete a historic Tour-Vuelta double in the same season, with only eight cyclists in history having won all three Grand Tours in their career. Pogacar's fellow countryman Primoz Roglic is chasing his fifth Vuelta win but finished a distant 24th. The race resumes on Sunday with a grueling 214.3km stage from Monaco to Manosque in France.