2004 Vuelta a España
Encyclopedia
The 59th Vuelta a España
(Tour of Spain
), a long-distance bicycle
stage
race and one of the 3 grand tours
, was held from September 4 to September 26, 2004. It consisted of 21 stages covering a total of 2,925 km, and was won by Roberto Heras
of the Liberty Seguros
cycling team
.
Halfway through the 2004 Vuelta, it appeared it would become an easy win for Heras, but in the last week his fellow countryman Santiago Pérez
won two heavy mountain stages, thus becoming an important rival. Eventually Heras won with only 30 seconds advantage on Pérez. Francisco Mancebo
, also from Spain took third. The first non-Spaniard was Stefano Garzelli
from Italy
in 11th. The points jersey was won by Erik Zabel
from Germany
, the mountain jersey was won by Félix Cárdenas
from Colombia
and the combination jersey was won by Roberto Heras. Kelme
was the winner of the team ranking. Alessandro Petacchi
, an Italian sprinter won four stages, but he didn't finish the Vuelta. Pérez Fernández won three stages.
Phonak hearing systems
teammates Tyler Hamilton and Santiago Pérez would later test positive for blood doping from blood samples taken during the race.
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 September 4 to September 26, 2004. It consisted of 21 stages covering a total of 2,925 km, and was won by Roberto Heras
Roberto Heras
Roberto Heras Hernández is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record-tying three times. He broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but was disqualified for taking EPO. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court...
of the Liberty Seguros
Liberty Seguros
Liberty Seguros is an international subsidiary of Liberty Mutual Group, a Boston-based insurance company.-Cycling teams:Liberty Seguros sponsored the UCI ProTour cycling team, Liberty Seguros – Würth, but dropped the sponsorship on 25 May 2006 due to the Operación Puerto doping case, involving 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...
.
Halfway through the 2004 Vuelta, it appeared it would become an easy win for Heras, but in the last week his fellow countryman Santiago Pérez
Santiago Pérez (cyclist)
Santiago Pérez Fernández is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for Barbot-Efapel....
won two heavy mountain stages, thus becoming an important rival. Eventually Heras won with only 30 seconds advantage on Pérez. Francisco Mancebo
Francisco Mancebo
Francisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006....
, also from Spain took third. The first non-Spaniard was Stefano Garzelli
Stefano Garzelli
Stefano Garzelli is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. The high point of his career to date was his overall win in the 2000 Giro d'Italia, after a close three-way competition with Gilberto Simoni and Francesco Casagrande.-Career:He started out as being a domestique for Marco Pantani but...
from Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in 11th. The points jersey was won by Erik Zabel
Erik Zabel
Erik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history...
from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the mountain jersey was won by Félix Cárdenas
Félix Cárdenas
Félix Rafael Cárdenas Ravalo is a Colombian professional road bicycle racer who rode for UCI Professional Continental team Barloworld until the team's demise.-Palmarès:*1996...
from Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and the combination jersey was won by Roberto Heras. Kelme
Comunidad Valenciana (cycling team)
-History:In 1979, Kelme sponsored the mountains classification in the Vuelta a España. The owners of Kelme were not satisfied with the publicity that this gave, so they decided to sponsor a cycling team instead....
was the winner of the team ranking. Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling...
, an Italian sprinter won four stages, but he didn't finish the Vuelta. Pérez Fernández won three stages.
Phonak hearing systems
Phonak (cycling team)
Phonak was a Swiss professional cycling team from 2000 until 2006. The team was one of 20 teams in the first UCI ProTour in 2005...
teammates Tyler Hamilton and Santiago Pérez would later test positive for blood doping from blood samples taken during the race.
Jersey progress
| Stage (Winner) |
General Classification General Classification The general classification in bicycle racing is the category that tracks overall times for bicycle riders in multi-stage bicycle races... |
Points Classification |
Mountains Classification |
Combination Classification |
Team Classification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stage 1 (TTT) |
Floyd Landis Floyd Landis Floyd Landis is an American retired cyclist who after initially being awarded victory in the 2006 Tour de France was stripped of his title for a doping offense. He was an all-around rider, with special skills in climbing and time-trialing, and is also known to be a very fast descender.Landis... |
Floyd Landis Floyd Landis Floyd Landis is an American retired cyclist who after initially being awarded victory in the 2006 Tour de France was stripped of his title for a doping offense. He was an all-around rider, with special skills in climbing and time-trialing, and is also known to be a very fast descender.Landis... |
Floyd Landis Floyd Landis Floyd Landis is an American retired cyclist who after initially being awarded victory in the 2006 Tour de France was stripped of his title for a doping offense. He was an all-around rider, with special skills in climbing and time-trialing, and is also known to be a very fast descender.Landis... |
Floyd Landis Floyd Landis Floyd Landis is an American retired cyclist who after initially being awarded victory in the 2006 Tour de France was stripped of his title for a doping offense. He was an all-around rider, with special skills in climbing and time-trialing, and is also known to be a very fast descender.Landis... |
|
| Stage 2 (Alessandro Petacchi Alessandro Petacchi Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling... ) |
Max Van Heeswijk Max van Heeswijk Max Lambert Peter van Heeswijk is a Dutch retired professional road racing cyclist.- Major achievements :2000... |
Erik Zabel Erik Zabel Erik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history... |
|||
| Stage 3 (Alejandro Valverde Alejandro Valverde Alejandro Valverde Belmonte is a Spanish road racing cyclist currently under suspension. He last rode for UCI ProTour team . Valverde's biggest wins have been the 2009 Vuelta a España, the Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2006, 2008 and 2006 UCI ProTour series championship... ) |
Benoit Joachim Benoît Joachim Benoît Joachim is a professional road racing cyclist from Luxembourg.Joachim started his professional career at the age of 18 for a small Italian cycling team, Sonego Sport, After racing with them for three months, he was noticed by a bigger, De Nardi who were interesting him... |
Stuart O'Grady Stuart O'Grady Stuart O'Grady OAM , nicknamed Stuey, is an Australian professional road bicycle racer on UCI ProTeam , who started as a track cyclist. He and Graeme Brown won a gold medal in Men's Madison at the 2004 Summer Olympics... |
|||
| Stage 4 (Alessandro Petacchi Alessandro Petacchi Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling... ) |
Erik Zabel Erik Zabel Erik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history... |
||||
| Stage 5 (Denis Menchov Denis Menchov Denis Nikolayevich Menchov , born 25 January 1978 in Oryol, is a professional Russian road bicycle racer for . He is a general classification rider and a climber. In 2005 he won the Vuelta a España, which he won for a second time in 2007... ) |
Manuel Beltran Manuel Beltrán Manuel Beltrán Martinez is a professional road bicycle racer from Spain. Beltrán won his first professional race at the 1997 Giro d'Italia, winning stage 19. His finishes in the Tour de France are somewhat misleading as he was a lieutenant for his team leader... |
Stuart O'Grady Stuart O'Grady Stuart O'Grady OAM , nicknamed Stuey, is an Australian professional road bicycle racer on UCI ProTeam , who started as a track cyclist. He and Graeme Brown won a gold medal in Men's Madison at the 2004 Summer Olympics... |
Juan Manuel Garate Juan Manuel Gárate Juan Manuel Gárate Cepa is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist. He currently rides for the Rabobank team. He is perceived to be a climbing specialist, and to date his greatest achievements have been in the Giro d'Italia, where he placed fourth overall in 2002, fifth overall in 2005 and won... |
||
| Stage 6 (Óscar Freire Óscar Freire Óscar Freire Gómez is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding for the UCI ProTeam Rabobank. He is one of the top sprinters in road bicycle racing, having won the world championship a three times, equalling Alfredo Binda, Rik Van Steenbergen and Eddy Merckx... ) |
Francisco Mancebo Francisco Mancebo Francisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006.... |
Manuel Beltran Manuel Beltrán Manuel Beltrán Martinez is a professional road bicycle racer from Spain. Beltrán won his first professional race at the 1997 Giro d'Italia, winning stage 19. His finishes in the Tour de France are somewhat misleading as he was a lieutenant for his team leader... |
|||
| Stage 7 (Alessandro Petacchi Alessandro Petacchi Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling... ) |
Erik Zabel Erik Zabel Erik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history... |
Denis Menchov Denis Menchov Denis Nikolayevich Menchov , born 25 January 1978 in Oryol, is a professional Russian road bicycle racer for . He is a general classification rider and a climber. In 2005 he won the Vuelta a España, which he won for a second time in 2007... |
|||
| Stage 8 (Tyler Hamilton Tyler Hamilton Tyler Hamilton is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. Hamilton became a professional cyclist in 1995, and during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France was a teammate of Lance Armstrong who won those races.Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer... ) |
Floyd Landis Floyd Landis Floyd Landis is an American retired cyclist who after initially being awarded victory in the 2006 Tour de France was stripped of his title for a doping offense. He was an all-around rider, with special skills in climbing and time-trialing, and is also known to be a very fast descender.Landis... |
Floyd Landis Floyd Landis Floyd Landis is an American retired cyclist who after initially being awarded victory in the 2006 Tour de France was stripped of his title for a doping offense. He was an all-around rider, with special skills in climbing and time-trialing, and is also known to be a very fast descender.Landis... |
|||
| Stage 9 (Leonardo Piepoli Leonardo Piepoli Leonardo Piepoli is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. He most recently rode for on the UCI ProTour, but had his contract suspended in July 2008 during the Tour de France amid allegations of the use of the blood boosting drug EPO in the team.-Career:He is a record four-time winner of the... ) |
David Fernandez David Fernández David Fernández Miramontes is a Spanish footballer. Fernández began his career with his hometown club of Deportivo, but has spent most of his career in Scottish football. He had a successful spell with Livingston, which earned Fernández a £1M move to Celtic... |
Francisco Mancebo Francisco Mancebo Francisco Mancebo Pérez is a Spanish pro cyclist. He initially rode for team Illes Balears, but moved to AG2R Prévoyance in 2006.... |
|||
| Stage 10 (Eladio Jimenez Eladio Jiménez Eladio Jiménez Sánchez is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer. On December 7, 2009 the Union Cycliste Internationale announced that Jiménez had tested positive for erythropoietin after winning stage 6 of the 2009 Volta a Portugal. Three days later he announced his retirement... ) |
Stuart O'Grady Stuart O'Grady Stuart O'Grady OAM , nicknamed Stuey, is an Australian professional road bicycle racer on UCI ProTeam , who started as a track cyclist. He and Graeme Brown won a gold medal in Men's Madison at the 2004 Summer Olympics... |
José Miguel Elias | |||
| Stage 11 (David Zabriske) |
Alejandro Valverde Alejandro Valverde Alejandro Valverde Belmonte is a Spanish road racing cyclist currently under suspension. He last rode for UCI ProTour team . Valverde's biggest wins have been the 2009 Vuelta a España, the Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2006, 2008 and 2006 UCI ProTour series championship... |
||||
| Stage 12 (Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Hernández is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record-tying three times. He broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but was disqualified for taking EPO. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court... ) |
Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Hernández is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record-tying three times. He broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but was disqualified for taking EPO. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court... |
Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Hernández is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record-tying three times. He broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but was disqualified for taking EPO. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court... |
Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Hernández is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record-tying three times. He broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but was disqualified for taking EPO. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court... |
||
| Stage 13 (Alessandro Petacchi Alessandro Petacchi Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling... ) |
Erik Zabel Erik Zabel Erik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history... |
||||
| Stage 14 (Santiago Pérez Santiago Pérez (cyclist) Santiago Pérez Fernández is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for Barbot-Efapel.... ) |
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| Stage 15 (ITT) (Santiago Pérez Santiago Pérez (cyclist) Santiago Pérez Fernández is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for Barbot-Efapel.... ) |
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| Stage 16 (José Julía) |
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| Stage 17 (Felix Cardenas Félix Cárdenas Félix Rafael Cárdenas Ravalo is a Colombian professional road bicycle racer who rode for UCI Professional Continental team Barloworld until the team's demise.-Palmarès:*1996... ) |
Felix Cardenas Félix Cárdenas Félix Rafael Cárdenas Ravalo is a Colombian professional road bicycle racer who rode for UCI Professional Continental team Barloworld until the team's demise.-Palmarès:*1996... |
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| Stage 18 (Javier Pasural Rodriguez) |
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| Stage 19 (Constantino Zaballa Constantino Zaballa Constantino Zaballa Gutiérrez is a professional road racing cyclist since 2001, currently riding for Portuguese UCI Continental team Centro Ciclismo de Loulé-Louletano-Aquashow. In 2005 he achieved his greatest victory by winning Clásica de San Sebastián... ) |
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| Stage 20 (José Enrique Gutierrez José Enrique Gutiérrez José Enrique Gutiérrez Cataluña is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist. His career highlights include second place overall at the 2006 Giro d'Italia, winning a stage of the Vuelta a España and two stages at the Dauphiné Libéré.Gutiérrez's name was brought up in the 2006 Operación... ) |
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| Stage 21 (ITT) (Santiago Pérez Santiago Pérez (cyclist) Santiago Pérez Fernández is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for Barbot-Efapel.... ) |
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| Final | Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Hernández is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record-tying three times. He broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but was disqualified for taking EPO. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court... |
Erik Zabel Erik Zabel Erik Zabel is a former German professional road bicycle racer who last raced with Milram. With over 200 professional wins he is considered by some one of the greatest German cyclists and best cycling sprinters of history... |
Felix Cardenas Félix Cárdenas Félix Rafael Cárdenas Ravalo is a Colombian professional road bicycle racer who rode for UCI Professional Continental team Barloworld until the team's demise.-Palmarès:*1996... |
Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Hernández is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record-tying three times. He broke the record with a fourth win in 2005, but was disqualified for taking EPO. In June 2011, Heras successfully appealed the disqualification in the civil court... |
General classification (final)
| Rank | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 77h42'46" | ||
| 2 | 30" | ||
| 3 | 2'13" | ||
| 4 | 3'30" | ||
| 5 | 7'44" | ||
| 6 | 8'11" | ||
| 7 | 8'32" | ||
| 8 | Paternina-Costa De Almeria | 13'08" | |
| 9 | 13'24" | ||
| 10 | 15'15" | ||
| 11 | 16'33" | ||
| 12 | 17'14" | ||
| 13 | 17'43" | ||
| 14 | Paternina-Costa De Almeria | 24'16" | |
| 15 | 29'23" | ||
| 16 | 29'51" | ||
| 17 | Paternina-Costa De Almeria | 30'49" | |
| 18 | Cafe Baque | 31'24" | |
| 19 | 34'35" | ||
| 20 | Relax-Bergasol Relax-Gam Relax-GAM Fuenlabrada was a professional cycling team based in Spain and participated in UCI Europe Tour and when selected as a wildcard to UCI ProTour events.... |
37'49" | |
| 21 | 38'06" |