9 facts you did not know about La Vuelta a Colombia
The last stage of the Vuelta a Colombia will be run this Sunday, how much do you know about this event? Test your knowledge here!.
The first return to Colombia had its origin thanks to Colombian journalism, more specifically to the newspaper El Tiempo, which devised and sponsored the event in August 1950. Photo: Wikimedia-Grillobike
LatinAmerican Post| Juan Manuel Londoño
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Leer en español: 9 datos que no sabías de la Vuelta a Colombia
An origin in journalism
The first Vuelta a Colombia had its origin thanks to Colombian journalism, more specifically to the newspaper El Tiempo, which devised and sponsored the event in August 1950 . This first lap covered a distance of 1233 km .
Vuelta a Colombia en Bicicleta -Puente Principal de Bugalagrande. Década de 1950 pic.twitter.com/7MINpetfgj
— Historia de Colombia (@colombia_hist) February 14, 2020
Foreign winners
It is clear that in the history of la Vuelta, the majority of winners have been Colombians , but did you know that there are some foreign winners? In total, there have been 5
- The French José Beyaert in 1952
- The Spaniard José Gómez del Moral in 1957
- Venezuelan José Rujano in 2009
- The Spanish Óscar Sevilla (dual nationality) from 2013 to 2015
- Ecuadorian Jonathan Caicedo in 2018
No paramos, recorremos cada lugar de Antioquia y Colombia llevando el nombre de Medellín.
Primeros kilómetros de entrenamiento del 2021. Vamos con todo #VivaMedellín pic.twitter.com/pw4TpSL4GX
— Team Medellín (@team_medellin) January 4, 2021
More stages won
In total, Colombia is the country that has won the most stages with 865 stages until this edition of the lap. It is followed by Spain with 56 and Venezuela with 16 .
The youngest winner
The youngest winner of La Vuelta a Colombia has been Ruben Dario Gomez, who in 1959 won the competition at 19 years, 3 months and 2 days .
Rubén Darío Gómez, más conocido como "El tigrillo de Pereira". Bicampeón de la Vuelta a Colombia y el Clásico RCN. Foto: Horacio Gil Ochoa pic.twitter.com/0GKnxKIbBF
— Ciclismo Colombiano (@ColCiclismo) January 4, 2017
The oldest winner
Óscar Sevilla, the Spanish-Colombian cyclist, is the oldest winner to lift the trophy. Sevilla was 38 years, 10 months and 16 days old when he won La Vuelta in 2015 . It is worth noting that this would be the third consecutive round that Seville would win.
PRÓLOGO #VColombia2021
TIEMPOS PARCIALES
El líder de la escuadra antioqueña sigue ocupando parcialmente la primera posición de la jornada:
1. Óscar Sevilla (@team_medellin) – 8:43
2. Bryan Gómez (@Team_SuperGIROS) – 8:46
3. Daniel Jaramillo (@OrgullPaisa) – 8:53 pic.twitter.com/tlTrVAXZT0
— Vuelta a Colombia Oficial (@Vueltacolombia1) April 16, 2021
Great prizes
The prize for the winner of a stage of the last edition of the Tour of Colombia was 600,000 Colombian pesos (approximately 200 dollars) . In its original edition? The winner of a stage took 50 pesos.
Also read: This is the year of Egan Bernal
The most victorious
The Boyacense Rafael Antonio Niño is the cyclist who has won the Vuelta more times , with a total of 6. On the other hand, the one who has won the most stages is Martín Emilio Rodríguez Gutiérrez or “Cochise” with 39 .
¿Recuerdas quién decía esta frase: "En Colombia se muere más gente de envidia que de cáncer"?
Sí, el gran 'Coshise' Rodríguez.
No dejes de ver la entrevista que @SenalDeportes le hizo a esta leyenda de la Vuelta a Colombiahttps://t.co/6S5x2p5Ode#ColombiaRuedaXSenal
— RTVC Colombia (@RTVCco) April 18, 2021
An unbreakable record
Ramón Hoyos, a native of Antioquia, is the only four-time consecutive champion who has the tournament . This record has been undefeated since 1956. Hoyos is also the cyclist who has won the most stages in a single edition, with 12.
Ramón Hoyos, Ídolo en la década de 1950, cuando el ciclismo era todo en Colombia. Pentacampeón Vuelta a Colombia. pic.twitter.com/WLjkz5DxRY
— Historia de Colombia (@colombia_hist) February 4, 2017
And the women's Tour of Colombia?
Only since 2016 has the Women's Vuelta a Colombia been held , a surprising fact, considering the popularity of cycling in the country. The woman who has won the most editions of this competition is Ana Cristina Sanabria, who won the first three editions.
Ana Cristina Sanabria, tricampeona de la Vuelta a Colombia femenina. https://t.co/pjPqinxbFo pic.twitter.com/3YvXk0aGlG
— elespectador (@elespectador) October 14, 2018