1981 Vuelta a España
Encyclopedia
The 36th Vuelta a España
(Tour of Spain
), a long-distance bicycle
stage
race and one of the 3 grand tours
, was held from April 21 to May 10, 1981. It consisted of 19 stages covering a total of 3446 km, and was won by Giovanni Battaglin
of the cycling team
.
Regis Clere won the prologue of the race and kept the leader’s jersey until the mountain time trial where on the very long climb to Sierra Nevada, Giovanni Battaglin
won the stage and took over the leader’s jersey. The only threat to Battaglin’s lead was Pedro Muñoz.
The entire Teka team withdrew from the race withdrawing potential favourites Marino Lejarreta
and Alberto Fernández. Battaglin and his Inoxpran team withstood the challenge from the Spanish and brought Battaglin to his first grand tour victory. Three days later after Battalin’s triumph in Spain, he began the 1981 Giro d'Italia
which he would win becoming only the second rider after Eddy Merckx
to win the Vuelta-Giro double.
Vuelta a España
The Vuelta a España is a three-week road bicycle racing stage race that is one of the three "Grand Tours" of Europe and part of the UCI World Ranking calendar. The race lasts three weeks and attracts cyclists from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages...
(Tour of Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
), a long-distance bicycle
Bicycle racing
Bicycle racing is a competition sport in which various types of bicycles are used. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, bike trials, and cycle speedway. Bicycle racing is recognised as an Olympic sport...
stage
Stage (bicycle race)
In sports, a stage, or leg, or heat, is a unit of a race which has been divided in several parts for the reason such as length of the distance to be covered, as in a multi-day event. Usually, such a race consists of "ordinary" stages, but sometimes stages are held as an individual time trial or a...
race and one of the 3 grand tours
Grand Tour (cycling)
In road bicycle racing, a Grand Tour refers to one of the three major European professional cycling stage races:* Tour de France – Tour of France , held in July* Giro d'Italia – Tour of Italy , held in May...
, was held from April 21 to May 10, 1981. It consisted of 19 stages covering a total of 3446 km, and was won by Giovanni Battaglin
Giovanni Battaglin
Giovanni Battaglin is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. The highlight of his career was his overall win in the 1981 Giro d'Italia. He also won the 1981 Vuelta a España.-Early years:...
of the cycling team
Cycling team
A cycling team is a group of cyclists who join a team or are acquired and train together to compete in bicycle races whether recreational or professional - and the supporting personnel...
.
Regis Clere won the prologue of the race and kept the leader’s jersey until the mountain time trial where on the very long climb to Sierra Nevada, Giovanni Battaglin
Giovanni Battaglin
Giovanni Battaglin is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. The highlight of his career was his overall win in the 1981 Giro d'Italia. He also won the 1981 Vuelta a España.-Early years:...
won the stage and took over the leader’s jersey. The only threat to Battaglin’s lead was Pedro Muñoz.
The entire Teka team withdrew from the race withdrawing potential favourites Marino Lejarreta
Marino Lejarreta
Marino Lejarreta Arrizabalaga is a retired Spanish professional road racing cyclist. His biggest victory was capturing the 1982 Vuelta a España, a Grand Tour stage race, and he is the inaugural and record three-time winner of the Clásica de San Sebastián , which is now considered a one-day classic...
and Alberto Fernández. Battaglin and his Inoxpran team withstood the challenge from the Spanish and brought Battaglin to his first grand tour victory. Three days later after Battalin’s triumph in Spain, he began the 1981 Giro d'Italia
1981 Giro d'Italia
The 1981 Giro d'Italia of cycling, the 64th running of the race, was held from 13 May to 7 June 1981, consisting of 22 stages. It was won by Giovanni Battaglin.-General classification:-Maglia rosa holders:-Other jerseys:...
which he would win becoming only the second rider after Eddy Merckx
Eddy Merckx
Edouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx , better known as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian former professional cyclist. The French magazine Vélo called him "the most accomplished rider that cycling has ever known." The American publication, VeloNews, called him the greatest and most successful cyclist of all...
to win the Vuelta-Giro double.
General classification
| Rank | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 98h 04' 49s | ||
| 2 | Zor-Helios | +2' 09s | |
| 3 | Kelme-Gios | +2' 29s | |
| 4 | +3' 33s | ||
| 5 | Colchon C.R. | +4' 26s | |
| 6 | Zor-Helios | +4' 30s | |
| 7 | Reynolds-Galli | +6' 05s | |
| 8 | Zor-Helios | +7' 09s | |
| 9 | Miko-Mercier | +7' 23s | |
| 10 | Zor-Helios | +10' 54s |
| Final general classification (11–25) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Rider | Team | Time |
| 11 | Zor-Helios | +12' 48s | |
| 12 | +13' 49s | ||
| 13 | Zor-Helios | +16' 17s | |
| 14 | +17' 17s | ||
| 15 | HB Alarmsystemen | +19' 55s | |
| 16 | Hueso-Manzaneque | +22' 32s | |
| 17 | Colchon C.R. | +26' 16s | |
| 18 | Colchon C.R. | +27' 36s | |
| 19 | Colchon C.R. | +29' 46s | |
| 20 | Zor-Helios | +30' 36s | |
| 21 | Miko-Mercier | +31' 54s | |
| 22 | Colchon C.R. | +33' 24s | |
| 23 | Zor-Helios | +36' 30s | |
| 24 | +37' 49s | ||
| 25 | Reynolds-Galli | +44' 44s | |
Team classification
| Rank | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zor Helios | 294h 09' 15" |
| 2 | Inoxpran | +17'14" |
| 3 | Colchon CR | +43'04" |
| 4 | Kelme | +1h05'01" |
| 5 | Miko Mercier | +1h19'31" |
| 6 | Reynolds | +1h48'41" |
| 7 | H.B. | +2h06'31" |
| 8 | Manzaneque | +2h30'41" |
Points classification
| Rank | Rider | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colchon | 211 | |
| 2 | Kelme | 137 | |
| 3 | Zor | 134 |
Mountains classification
| Rank | Rider | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reynolds | 144 | |
| 2 | Kelme | 98 | |
| 3 | Zor | 69 | |
| 4 | Inoxpran | 60 | |
| 5 | Zor | 57 | |
Sprints classification
| Rank | Rider | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manzaneque | 21 | |
| 2 | Reynolds | 12 | |
| 3 | Kelme | 10 | |