Co Tyrone’s Darren Rafferty is bracing for his Grand Tour debut when he begins the Vuelta a Espana with the EF Education-EasyPost team in Lisbon this weekend.
Rafferty (21), who battled his way to the Elite Men’s National Road Race Championship title in Athea back in June, has made huge strides in 2024 and is relishing the opportunity to line out in La Vuelta, one of cycling’s ‘Big Three’ alongside the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia.
The Dungannon man, in the midst of his WorldTour debut year on the back of victory in the Giro Ciclisto della Valle d’Aosta Mont Blanc and a runner-up finish in the Giro Next Gen in 2023, will now embark on one of the most significant steps of his career as he tackles the 21-stage Vuelta which begins on Saturday.
From then until September 8, Rafferty will tackle the might of a 3,265-kilometre course that stretches across Portugal and Spain, beginning in the Portuguese capital and ending in the Spanish counterpart Madrid.
Rafferty, who will support experienced Ecuadorian team leader Richard Carapaz in La Vuelta, admitted he was “excited and a bit nervous” but added that he will make sure to take in a memorable experience.
“It’s going to be my first Grand Tour,” he said. “I’m going in with a nice role of helping the team and seeing how far Carapaz can go.
“Hopefully, we can go all the way for him. It’s an honour to ride for Richie.
“Just to be on the team with such high-level riders is impressive. I will do the best I can and try to be as useful as possible.
“If I’ve done my job well and I make it to Madrid, I’ll be pretty pleased. It’s hard to go in with a massive personal goal, but I think the team goal is definitely a big one. (I) hope that I can play a small part in making it go all the way.”