Rock Racing's Sevilla Fifth on Stage #3

(May 14, 2008)
Report Filed by : Rock Racing Pro Cycling Team

Tunja, Colombia — The success of a solo breakaway on Stage 3 of the Vuelta a Colombia cost Rock Racing’s Oscar Sevilla one place in the overall standings, but the Spaniard remains less than a minute off the overall lead.

Sanitago Ojeda (Lottery Boyacá) won Tuesday’s 105.3-mile (169.5 km) race from Socorro to Tunja by three minutes and 30 seconds over Juan Pablo Wilches (Multirepuestos Bosa). Sevilla finished third in the field sprint of about 70 riders for fifth place on the stage, 3:43 behind Ojeda. He remains 42 seconds behind, in seventh place overall.

“Oscar is looking very strong and his confidence keeps growing,” Rock Racing Team Director Mariano Friedrick said.

Ojeda and two other breakaway riders led by more than five minutes at one point during Tuesday’s race, but the team of overall leader Carlos Ospina (GW-Shimano-EPM) worked together with Rock Racing and the Une Racing Team to reduce the gap. Ojeda soloed away from the two others to climb into second overall, four seconds behind Ospina.

“The plan was to keep Oscar safe at all times and have him just follow the main contenders,” Friedrick said. “The climbs weren’t that long, but we just kept going up the whole time.”

Sevilla’s Rock Racing teammates Victor Hugo Peña (59th overall, 5:26 behind) and Tyler Hamilton (80th overall, 20:35 behind) assisted with the chase to keep the breakaway in check.

Rock Racing started the 14-stage, 15-day race with seven riders but is down to four following Tuesday’s withdrawal of Adam Switters and Jeremiah Wiscovitch. Rock Racing’s Sergio Hernandez is 127th overall, 53:56 behind.

Wednesday’s Stage 4 travels 119.3 miles (192 km) from Tunja to La Vega. It includes three categorized climbs and three sprint competitions.

- RRC -

ABOUT ROCK RACING:
Rock Racing is an eclectic team of powerful, world-class athletes who are redefining professional cycling through incredible teamwork and a flamboyant flair never before seen in the pro peloton. Created in 2007 and sponsored by Rock & Republic CEO and Head Designer Michael Ball, the team rapidly became a fan favorite through its thrilling racing action, cunning tactics and winning tradition. It also redefined the look of the pro cycling team uniform with jerseys and shorts that seemingly changed from race to race. In 2008, Rock Racing hits the road with a singular vision: to be the No. 1 cycling team in the United States. The team competes in UCI and USA Cycling-sanctioned races on both the road and track and will be represented at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Additionally, Rock Racing sponsors successful women’s and junior racing teams that are making headlines on a local level and paving the way for a bright future for the sport.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Katrina Florence, 310.995.3619 |  katrina@teamelevation.com
Sean Weide, 402.541.2594 |  sean@teamelevation.com

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