|
Stages:
|
24 |
|
Kms:
|
3.932 |
|
Riders:
|
42 |
|
|
|
Kms/hour:
|
29,118 |
|
Retired:
|
16 |
Emilio and Manuel Rodriguez were the undisputed
protagonists in the edition; they took the first two positions in the Individual
Overall Standings and the triumph in the Climbers Overall Standings. However,
this edition of Vuelta a España will not only be remembered thanks to this
fact, but also because this race marked the end of a period. El Diario Ya
organized the race for the last time and transferred the responsability to
El Correo Español-El Pueblo Vasco, who took charge of the event; though it
only was from 1955 onwards and therefore the enthusiasts were deprived of
the race for four years, period which is considered as one of the darkest
points in the history of Spanish cycling.
Only 42 riders, 34 Spanish, decided to face the 24 stages, along which they
were forced to cover 3.932 kilometres, an enormous amount even nowadays when
technology, medicine and physical training are spectacular; therefore such
a long route was almost inconceivable in 1950.
The interest decreased as well, given the overwhelming superiority on the
part of the brothers Rodriguez, Serra, Bernardo Ruiz, who took the first four
positions in the Individual Overall Standings and also Capó and Gelabert.
These six riders won eleven of the 24 stages and set up an unassailable team
for the rest of riders; in order to prove it we just have to have a look at
the Climbers Overall Standings whose first two positions were also reached
by Emilio Rodriguez and Serra.
The emotion present in past editions disappeared, though the proceeding of
the race did not change in its basic aspects. The Spanish riders were leaders
in the mountainous stages and the foreign riders in the flat stages, something
which has been repeated very frequently throughout the history of Spanish
cycling.
The brothers Rodriguez, Emilio and Manuel, emulated the Belgian riders Gustave
and Alphonse Deloor with their performance; these Belgian riders were the
absolute rulers in the edition of 1936, the second in the history of our cycling,
in which they took the first two positions.
