With the 2024 Tour of Ecuador cycling finished in its men’s category, the women’s and youth cycling started. This Thursday, November 21, the two events began with the first of four stages to be disputed.
The first day for both competitions took place in a closed circuit in Cotacachi. This was planned to cover 104.64 kilometers. In turn, this would comprise 12 laps for both women and the youth category of men.
Like the first stage, the following three will continue their development in the province of Imbabura. These will have one more route that will take place in Cotacachi and the remaining two will be held in Atuntaqui and will also correspond to a circuit.
In the women’s category, 36 cyclists were registered to compete in the Vuelta al Ecuador. In the Youth category, a total of 141 athletes were registered, both men and women, and within the different categories.
The first stage of the Women’s Tour of Ecuador was won by Elizabeth Castaño.
In the Women’s Tour of Ecuador, Elizabeth Castaño of the Colombia Potencia de Vida team had an unbeatable performance. The cyclist won three awards and two jerseys during the same day.
The athlete crossed the finish line first with a time of 02:27:01 hours and established herself as leader of the general classification. Likewise, she was also crowned as the fastest and with the highest place in the flying goals.
In the under-23 classification, Natalia Vásquez of Team Movistar Best PC was crowned at the top. The best junior was Milagros Fuentes of Team Pichincha.
The first stage of Women’s Tour of Ecuador also saw the retirement of two riders: Camila Vega and María Paula Pazmiño. At the same time, the 12 laps that were initially planned were reduced to nine due to a decision of the race director commissioner.
How was the first stage of the Youth Tour?
In the Vuelta Juvenil, Mateo Ramirez of Team Pichincha was the one who established himself as leader of the classification. In the flying goals, Anthony Trávez and Kevin Narváez of Movistar Best PC passed first the two that were established.
In the women’s sector, Nahomi Játiva was who was constituted at the top.
Source: Paulo Álvarez, www.elcomercio.com