Wout van Aert turns Vuelta plan into fourth stage win

Wout van Aert converted a carefully prepared late move into his fourth stage victory at the Vuelta, extending his record of success in Grand Tours. The Belgian had identified the finish as an opportunity to avoid a pure sprint and executed the plan with Valentin Paret-Peintre as his only close rival.

The 13th stage ended with Van Aert beating the Frenchman in a two-rider sprint. Their move began three kilometres from the finish, after Van Aert attacked on a short rise through a village. Paret-Peintre stayed with him, contributed during the escape and reached the finish alongside the Belgian.

Van Aert had also targeted the breakaway from the beginning because he expected the stage to be difficult for the peloton to control. His team had several possible options for the front group, including Matthew, Christophe and Bruno, allowing them to place multiple riders in the move. That approach worked and left Van Aert in position to follow through on his finishing plan.

The victory takes Van Aert to 15 Grand Tour stage wins. It also rewards his reading of the route: he judged that a direct sprint carried greater risk and chose the uphill launch point before the finale instead.