Fernando Gaviria beats Mark Cavendish to take Tour de San Luis opener
20-year-old Colombian rider Fernando Gaviria out-paces Mark Cavendish and Sacha Modolo to win the first stage of the Tour de San Luis
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

Mark Cavendish (Etixx-QuickStep) lost his first sprint of the season to 20-year-old Colombian Fernando Gaviria in the Tour de San Luis in Argentina today.
Gaviria, racing for Colombia's national team, shot past both Cavendish and Italy's Sacha Modolo (Lampre-Merida) to win stage one and take the leader's jersey.
“I thought that it was impossible to beat them," Gaviria said. "They are so strong, the race was so tough, but finally I was lucky.”
Prior to this afternoon in Villa Mercedes, at the end of 186.8 kilometres of racing, Gaviria was better known as 2012 junior world champion in the Omnium and Madison track events.
Cavendish had the help of team-mate Michal Kwiatkowski, who won the road World Championship title last year in Ponferrada, Spain. Kwiatkowski peeled off in the final kilometre straight, another Etixx team-mate took over and Cavendish sat behind ready to sprint with Modolo on his wheel.
Gaviria shot left out of the slip-stream of Cavendish and Modolo and jumped ahead to an advantage that his rivals could not recover from. He won by a half- to full-bike's length over Cavendish and raised both hands, flashing his white Colombia jersey in the unusual grey overcast day in central Argentina.
Cavendish counts over 100 professional road wins, including the first stage in Villa Mercedes in 2013. Gaviria now has his first.
>>> In pictures: Cavendish's 2015 S-Works Venge
Gaviria can partly thank the work of Cavendish's Etixx team for controlling an early three-man escape. The three stayed free until 15 kilometres remaining.
Etixx controlled another small attack, but could not stop Gaviria.
"We have a neo-pro in Lukasz Wisniowski here, and we have Fabio Sabatini in his first race with us," explained Cavendish. "Considering this and that we had six guys I think we did more than a perfect job going into the sprint. But Gaviria got the first jump and he deserved the win today.
"I saw 300 metres to to go, it was a real small sign. I waited for 200, I didn't see 200 and then he jumped. He went super fast. I saw the line, I didn't see 200 yet, but at that point I knew I just had to go. It was too late."
British rider Dan McLay, in his debut season for Bretagne-Seche Environnement, finished in 161st place.
Results
Tour de San Luis 2015, stage one: San Luis to Villa Mercedes, 186.8km
1. Fernando Gavira (Col) Colombia in 4-40-13
2. Mark Cavendish (GBr) Etixx-QuickStep
3. Sacha Modolo (Ita) Lampre-Merida
4. Nicolas Marini (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini
5. Sebastian Jose Tolosa (Arg) Buenos Aires
6. Oscar Gatto (Ita) Androni Giocattoli
7. Yohann Gene (Fra) Europcar
8. Marco Canola (Ita) UnitedHealthcare
9. Jakub Mareczko (Ita) Italy
10. Armindo Fonseca (Fra) Bretagne-Seche Environnement all same time
Overall classification after stage one
1. Fernando Gavira (Col) Colombia
2. Mark Cavendish (GBr) Etixx-QuickStep
3. Sacha Modolo (Ita) Lampre-Merida
4. Nicolas Marini (Ita) Nippo-Vini Fantini
5. Sebastian Jose Tolosa (Arg) Buenos Aires
6. Oscar Gatto (Ita) Androni Giocattoli
7. Yohann Gene (Fra) Europcar
8. Marco Canola (Ita) UnitedHealthcare
9. Jakub Mareczko (Ita) Italy
10. Armindo Fonseca (Fra) Bretagne-Seche Environnement
Thank you for reading 10 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
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.
-
-
What a month off booze taught me about my cycling... and myself
Dry January is over - time to crack open a magnum of champagne, or crack on with the abstinence?
By Simon Smythe • Published
-
How to be a greener cyclist: 10 steps you can take to reduce your cycling carbon footprint
CW takes a look at how we, as cyclists, can contribute even more to the upkeep of the planet
By Hannah Bussey • Published
-
In photos: Mark Cavendish through the years, all his teams and kits
18 years, six teams, 161 wins. Will 2023 be a last hurrah for the British champion?
By Adam Becket • Published
-
CW Live: Mark Cavendish to start season at Oman; Giro wildcards unveiled; UCI updates Covid rules; Amsterdam builds underwater garage for 7,000 bikes; Cavendish family 'terrorised' by robbery; and LTNs do not push traffic onto boundary roads
All the news you need in the world of cycling this Thursday. It's cold!
By Adam Becket • Last updated
-
Last chance saloon: Why has Mark Cavendish ended up at Astana? And will it work?
The British champion has joined the sixth different team of his professional career in the hunt for one more Tour de France stage win
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Mark Cavendish signs for Astana-Qazaqstan and will remain on the WorldTour for 2023
The transfer saga is over, Mark Cavendish has officially found a team, and will chase the Tour de France stage win record
By Tom Davidson • Published
-
CW LIVE: Mark Cavendish threatened with knife in home robbery; Israel-Premier Tech and Uno-X receive wildcard invites to the Tour de France; Sonny Colbrelli looking to enter politics and concerns raised over Van Aert and Van der Poel appearance fees
All the latest news from the world of cycling
By Tom Thewlis • Last updated
-
CW Live: Van der Poel and Pieterse win Herentals CX; Mark Cavendish still not at Astana; Lizzie Deignan awarded MBE; 1.7% of bike theft cases result in a charge; Egan Bernal targets Tour de France return?
Happy new year from Cycling Weekly, here's everything you need to know this Tuesday
By Adam Becket • Last updated
-
CW Live: Mark Cavendish reportedly set to sign for Astana; Tom Pidcock smashes Sa Calobra KOM; London cycle lane gritting row; Ineos Grenadiers release new kit; Mathieu van der Poel 'scared' on Val di Sole snow; Lotto-Dstny skipping Giro d'Italia
All the news in the world of cycling you need to read
By Adam Becket • Last updated
-
Is Mark Cavendish heading to Astana?
The Manx Missile has been heavily linked to Astana since the departure of their GC rider Miguel Ángel López
By Adam Hart • Published