The Dane Jonas Vingegaard (Visma / Lease a Bike) adds his name to the list of winners of the Tour of Catalonia. The Catalan race, one of the oldest in the world, has gone from being sidelined in the calendar to becoming one of the events with the most impressive palmarès in recent years. In the last four years, the winners have been the Slovenians Primoz Roglic, Tadej Pogacar, and now, Vingegaard. That is to say, the great dominators of world cycling. And not so long ago, those who wore the leader's colors of the tour were Quintana, Yates, or Alejandro Valverde.

Sepp Kuss's (1994) life changed radically on September 1, 2019. He had arrived in Europe from the United States a couple of years earlier and was already making a name for himself in cycling. That day he rode his best race. It was the ninth stage of the Vuelta a España, and the finish line was in Els Cortals de Encamp, Andorra, where he lived. Waiting for him at the finish line was someone who would forever change his life: Noemí Ferré, the love of his life. She had gone to watch the stage finish with some friends, as she is also a cyclist and passionate about the sport. He, on the other hand, was gritting his teeth to reach the end. After the race, Noemí met Sepp because they had a mutual friend. That was the first and penultimate step, because after the Vuelta ended, the American wrote to her to arrange a meeting. Since then, they've been inseparable, and Kuss has become a true Catalan, even swapping his native Colorado for the Pyrenees forests, where he hopes to rack up successes in the Volta a Catalunya, which is about to begin.

From one small country to another. Slovenia has dominated the Vuelta a Catalunya recently. For the third time in a row, a Slovenian has won the Catalan race after a thrilling display by Primoz Roglic (Red Bull) on Montjuïc. Roglic, the 2023 champion, won the Volta for the second time, a year after his compatriot Tadej Pogacar's triumph. On the final stage, Roglic was one second behind Juan Ayuso (UAE), but the Barcelona-born cyclist was unable to compete with the Slovenian's experience. His attack on the final circuit of Montjuïc was thrilling. "Roglic was superior," Ayuso sadly admitted.

The wind left cycling fans who had filled the roads of Berguedà feeling the pinch. The warning for strong gusts turned the queen stage of the Vuelta a Catalunya into a rather uninteresting day, with a flurry of negotiations between the organizers and the cyclists over what to do. In the end, there was no ascent to the Pradell pass or the final climb to the Queralt sanctuary. Only one 73-kilometer stage was completed, although 48 kilometers were neutralized without bonuses, and time was stopped 5 kilometers from the finish. American Quinn Simmons (Lidl Trek) emerged victorious in this chaotic stage. It should have been the day to see Juan Ayuso (UAE) and Primož Roglič (Red Bull) battle it out for the title on the slopes of Queralt, but the fans had to settle for a few final kilometers in Berga.

His name occasionally appeared in conversations in many bars in Berguedà. Whether in the morning, when amateur cyclists were returning from pedaling and having a hearty breakfast, or in conversations that stretched into the early hours. They all talked about the Cannibal. Surely the greatest cyclist of all time, Eddy Merckx. The Belgian, five-time Tour de France winner, five-time Giro d'Italia winner, and three-time world champion. A collector of trophies and medals who never had enough. His name continued to be mentioned in the bars of Berguedà, where cycling is a hot topic. But more than a few people thought the veterans were exaggerating: had the best cyclist in the world really ridden there?

Cycling fans are gearing up for the Vuelta a Catalunya (Cycling Tour of Catalonia). The century-old event, one of the three oldest in the world, is enjoying a successful period that has seen the best cyclists compete in Catalan cycling races in recent years. While three-time Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar (UAE) won in 2024, with exhibitions that will be remembered for years to come, 2025 was supposed to be the debut year for Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma). But the two-time Tour de France champion will ultimately be out due to the crash that forced him to abandon Paris-Nice just over a week ago.