Kwiatkowski Demonstrates Sky's Depth

Young team impresses in Spain as Pole takes lead at the Vuelta a España, writes Vern Pitt

- Gregor Brown

Despite entering the Vuelta a España without one of its marquee Grand Tour leaders, Team Sky once again found itself with the overall leader in its ranks following the first three days of racing.

This time it was the turn of Polish national champion Michal‚ Kwiatkowski, who took the Tour of Spain’s red leader’s jersey on Sunday.

Sky has arrived with the fifth youngest team in the race, including Grand Tour debutants Tao Geoghegan Hart and Pavel Sivakov (in his first season in the pro ranks). But the squad showed little sign of lacking experience on Sunday as they set a blistering pace on the final third-category climb to shred a clutch of overall contenders. Race favourite Richie Porte (BMC) lost 13.31 to Kwiatkowski by the line, while Dan Martin (UAE-Emirates) lost 1.15.