Share

Valverde rises to top spot

Paris - Vuelta winner Alberto Contador will sit out of the season-ending Tour of Beijing with a knee injury, his absence ensuring fellow Spaniard Alejandro Valverde finishes the season at the top of the UCI WorldTour rankings.

Tinkoff-Saxo rider Contador crashed near the finish of Sunday's Tour of Lombardy, allowing second-place finisher Valverde to leapfrog his rival in the standings with one WorldTour event left, the Tour of Beijing starting on Friday.

"Bad news. Training today, hardly could pedal because of the knee, finally I don't go to China. Next thing is to do an MRI and start thinking of 2015," Contador wrote on his Twitter feed on Monday.

Valverde, who finished fourth overall in the Tour de France and third in the Vuelta, has 686 points in the WorldTour rankings to Contador's 620.

Australia's Simon Gerrans is third on 478 points but cannot overhaul the Spaniards.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
26% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1470 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2249 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE