
The third stage of the Dauphine Tour, raced between Brioude and Charantonnay, unlike the first two days of racing, saw the triumph of a rider who was part of the day's breakaway, which also included Mathieu van der Poel. This is Iván Romeo, a Spanish Movistar rider who today won the stage he had been studying for a long time. Romeo also conquered the yellow leader's jersey.
"It was one of the most difficult days of my career" - Romeo said at the end of the race - "I still can't believe it. With the heat, it was hard to push hard, but I felt good and took the risk of joining the breakaway. I waited until the last moment because in this type of flat finish, in a small group, only instinct matters".
Iván Romeo had studied this stage well and had raced it many times in his mind before today. "I had this stage in mind for a month. I went to Sierra Nevada to prepare and we did an excellent job with the team. From the beginning of the week, we all felt good and I finally managed to win!"
The breakaway does not always make it to the end and gift victory to one of its riders, but this time, things went well for Iván Romeo and his victory was born from that breakaway.
"It was very difficult to get into the breakaway, and once inside I didn't feel particularly good. So I waited until the last moment because I know I have a good instinct for this type of finish. When I saw that the others were not chasing me, I understood that I could give my all until the finish line. Hard work always pays off, and today we had proof of that. We know that everyone in the team can win, we must give our best and aim for stages as we did today. This victory is for the team and for my family, of course".