Chris Froome surprised by early edge over Vuelta a España rivals

The Team Sky leader put 52 seconds into race favourite Alberto Contador in the opening team time trial, but sits neck and neck with Nairo Quintana and Alejandro Valverde

Chris Froome (Sunada)

(Image credit: Yuzuru SUNADA)

Chris Froome says that he was "surprised" to feel so good in Saturday's team time trial and to help Team Sky take an early advantage on day one of the Vuelta a España, which still must cover 3200km over three weeks.

Sky's victory in northwest Spain near Ourense helped put Froome take seconds on some and nearly a minute on three-time race winner Alberto Contador (Tinkoff).

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Gregor Brown

Gregor Brown is an experienced cycling journalist, based in Florence, Italy. He has covered races all over the world for over a decade - following the Giro, Tour de France, and every major race since 2006. His love of cycling began with freestyle and BMX, before the 1998 Tour de France led him to a deep appreciation of the road racing season.