Leknessund seals first Grand Tour stage win

Norway’s Andreas Leknessund won stage seven of the Vuelta a Espana on Saturday, securing his first Grand Tour stage victory in emotional circumstances as the peloton paid tribute to the late King Harald V of Norway.

Leknessund, 27, broke away early and soloed to the finish after dropping his breakaway companions on the final climb, winning by 34 seconds ahead of teammate Tobias Halland Johannessen. Wout van Aert finished third, 47 seconds behind.

The victory held special significance given King Harald’s death at age 89 on Friday. Both Norwegian riders wore black armbands in his honor.

In the general classification, Tadej Pogacar maintained his overall lead despite finishing 19th on the stage, extending his advantage by 16 seconds after attacking his rivals in the closing kilometers. Britain’s Oscar Onley retained the young rider’s jersey, leading the white jersey classification by nearly four minutes.

The stage covered 149.8 kilometers from Vall d’Alba to Aramon Valdelinares, featuring over 3,500 meters of climbing through the mountainous terrain of Aragon, northeast Spain. The route included narrow streets in Llucena del Cid before reaching the final ascent.

Final stage results:
1. Andreas Leknessund (Nor/Uno-X Mobility) – 3:49:47
2. Tobias Halland Johannessen (Nor/Uno-X Mobility) + 34
3. Wout van Aert (Bel/Team Visma-Lease a Bike) + 47
4. Jakob Omrzel (Slo/Bahrain Victorious) + 58
5. Juan Felipe Rodriguez (Spa/EF Education-EasyPost) + 1:13

General classification top five:
1. Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) – 19:32:37
2. Enric Mas (Spa/Movistar) + 3:50
3. Primoz Roglic (Slo/Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe) + 4:50
4. Felix Gall (Aut/Decathlon CMA CGM) + 5:01
5. Sepp Kuss (US/Team Visma-Lease a Bike) + 6:05

Oscar Onley (GB/Netcompany Ineos) remained in sixth place overall, 6:06 behind Pogacar.