Bedmar, Jaén, Andújar, Villafranca de Córdoba and Córdoba were the locations for the 2024 edition of the Andalucía Bike Race by Garmin that started last Monday. Tim Smeenge and Teus Ruijter formed a duo that competed with the international marathon top. In the first stage, the KMC duo finished thirteenth behind winner Hans Becking with his Belgian teammate Wout Alleman. Despite some setbacks, Smeenge-Ruijter managed to finish eleventh and thirteenth in the second and third stages around Jaén. Fabian Rabensteiner and Samuele Porro and again Becking-Alleman were the stage winners.
The peloton moved to Villafranca de Córdoba for the fourth day, where a fast race with short climbs was on the program. Normally not suited to Smeenge-Ruijter, but they finished in ninth place behind the winning Swiss/Italian duo Casey South and Diego Rosa. The next day the longest stage of 88 kilometers around Córdoba was on the program and this stage again resulted in a top ten finish for Smeenge and Ruijter at tenth place. In the meantime, the duo was in eleventh place in the rankings with a view to a place in the top ten with only the 27 kilometer time trial around Córdoba to go. In the race against the clock, they managed to make up time on their closest competitors, but fell short to finish the race within the top ten.
‘All in all, we are very satisfied with eleventh place in this strong field. Two years ago we came seventeenth here. We have both trained hard this winter and have taken another step forward. We will take it easy for the coming week and then leave for South Africa for the Cape Epic that will take place from March 17 to 24,’ says Smeenge.
The overall victory went to the Italian duo Fabian Rabensteiner and Samuele Porro ahead of Becking-Alleman and the German/Swiss duo Seewald-Stutzman.