Matevz Govekar delivered an outstanding performance today at the UCI Gravel World Series event held during Sea Otter Europe Costa Brava Girona, taking a hard-fought victory on the challenging 107.22 km course.

The Slovenian rider was part of a leading trio that came to the finish line after a day through the rugged terrain of the picturesque Les Gavarres Massif. The route had included a punishing 1,828 meters of elevation gain, to increase the overall difficulty. Govekar’s win was a remarkable achievement, particularly given the absence of reigning Gravel World Champion Matej Mohorič, who was unable to start due to a crash during a course recon ride on Thursday.

Matevz Govekar reflected on his surprise win:
“This success was unexpected. We were a bit unfortunate with Matej crashing, but I knew I was in good shape, and we came here with the goal to win. I was really focused on delivering a strong performance. It was a tough race right from the start, but having done a recon, I was able to take advantage in the technical sections. I raced very aggressively, which helped me survive the hard climbs. In the end, I felt confident in my sprint. I really enjoyed today, and winning was the cherry on top!”

Meanwhile at the 2024 Tour de Luxembourg, stage 4 was a 15.5km individual time trial around Differdange, which featured a 1.49km climb at 7.8% midway through. Lying sixth on GC overnight, Bahrain’s Italian star Antonio Tiberi put in a phenomenal performance to finish second behind Spaniard Juan Ayuso (UAE), defeating far more established specialists on the day. Of the seven ITTs Tiberi has raced this season, he has been in the top ten in all but one, and on the podium three times.

Tiberi was delighted with both the result and his form at this point in the year:

“I’m happy and satisfied with the TT result today. From the start of this race I thought I could do well here because the parcours is quite tough and I have good legs at the moment. This gives me confidence and belief going into tomorrow, but even more looking forward to the World Championships and Il Lombardia.”

The result moves him up to fifth in the overall standings, ten seconds behind leader Mathieu van der Poel, as the peloton have one more test on Sunday. The closing stage is a tough one: 177km, 3100 metres of elevation gain, and an 800m ramp at 9.2% to finish.