CASTELLON, Spain (AP) — Three-time Tour de France champion Alberto Contador has lost the Spanish nationals by one second in his final tuneup for next month’s showcase race.
Jose Joaquin Rojas bolted past Contador 200 yards from the finish in stifling heat Sunday and held on to win. He completed the 123-mile road race in 5 hours, 1 minute, 25 seconds.
Contador was competing for the first time since last month’s Giro d’Italia victory. The Spaniard was cleared by his country’s federation of a failed drug test at last year’s Tour. He can race until his appeal is heard in August.
