By winning on top of Les Praeres last Sunday, Louis Meintjes climbed thirteen positions in the provisional classification of La Vuelta. At the end of the tenth stage, which was held the day after the restday as an individual time trial, the South African rider made his entry in the top fifteen of GC. He set the best time for Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux on an almost entirely flat course of 31 kilometer between Elche and Alicante, taking 26th in the stage result. He won again two positions in the classification and is now provisionally fourteenth. Domenico Pozzovivo stays in 22nd place.
« It's not that I wasn't feeling good in the first few days of this Vuelta, but it was only when I attacked last Sunday that I felt this little extra in the legs. I really benefited from the rest day to recover from all efforts made during the first week and the long day on Sunday, including the ceremony protocol and trip to Alicante. My victory gave a big boost to my motivation for this time trial. My performance enabled me to climb two places in the classification, but I wan't to avoid getting too excited. The level of the climbers is very high in this Vuelta and there are many GC contenders. There's still a long way to go and also the flat stages could be tricky because of the wind. I'm looking forward to the mountain top finishes on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. They are quite long so they should suit me quite well. »
