Emotional Nicolas Roche revels in stunning Vuelta victory

Nicolas Roche was the toast of the Vuelta a Espana yesterday when he won the 18th stage of the race in a two-up sprint against home favourite Haimar Zubeldia (Trek Factory Racing).

It was one of the best days of the Irishman’s career and just his second Grand Tour stage win in almost 10 years in the professional peloton.

It was all the more satisfying for Roche as he’s endured a torrid 10 days following successive crashes last week where he dropped out of contention for the overall and took some real beatings in the mountains.