The 34th Edition Vuelta a España (Tour of Spain), a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the three grand tours, was held from 24 April to 13 May 1979. It consisted of 19 stages covering a total of 3,373 km (2,096 mi), and was won by Joop Zoetemelk of the Miko–Mercier cycling team. Zoetemelk won two of the three ITT's and Fons De Wolf won the other. De Wolf also won the points classification as well as five stages, but Zoetemelk won the race with a comfortable lead ahead of Spanish climbing specialist Francisco Galdós and Michel Pollentier. Felipe Yáñez won the mountains classification.[1]
| Race details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dates | 24 April – 13 May | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stages | 19 stages + Prologue, including 3 split stages | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Distance | 3,373 km (2,096 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Winning time | 94h 57' 03" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Teams and riders edit
Route edit
| Stage | Date | Course | Distance | Type | Winner | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | 24 April | Jerez de la Frontera – Jerez de la Frontera | 6.3 km (4 mi) | 
|
Individual time trial |  Joop Zoetemelk (NED)
|
| 1 | 25 April | Jerez de la Frontera – Seville | 156 km (97 mi) |  Sean Kelly (IRL)
| ||
| 2 | 26 April | Seville – Córdoba | 188 km (117 mi) |  Alfons De Wolf (BEL)
| ||
| 3 | 27 April | Córdoba – Sierra Nevada | 190 km (118 mi) |  Felipe Yáñez (ESP)
| ||
| 4 | 28 April | Granada – Puerto Lumbreras | 222 km (138 mi) | Roger De Cnijf (BEL)
| ||
| 5 | 29 April | Puerto Lumbreras – Murcia | 139 km (86 mi) | Juan Argudo (ESP)
| ||
| 6 | 30 April | Murcia – Alcoy | 171 km (106 mi) |  Christian Levavasseur (FRA)
| ||
| 7 | 1 May | Alcoy – Sedaví | 173 km (107 mi) | Alfons De Wolf (BEL)
| ||
| 8a | 2 May | Sedaví – Benicàssim | 145 km (90 mi) | Sean Kelly (IRL)
| ||
| 8b | 2 May | Benicàssim – Benicàssim | 11.3 km (7 mi) |
|
Individual time trial | Joop Zoetemelk (NED)
|
| 9 | 3 May | Benicàssim – Reus | 193 km (120 mi) | Alfons De Wolf (BEL)
| ||
| 10 | 4 May | Reus – Zaragoza | 230 km (143 mi) | Noël Dejonckheere (BEL)
| ||
| 11 | 5 May | Zaragoza – Pamplona | 183 km (114 mi) | Noël Dejonckheere (BEL)
| ||
| 12 | 6 May | Pamplona – Logroño | 149 km (93 mi) | Frans Van Vlierberghe (BEL)
| ||
| 13 | 7 May | Haro – Peña Cabarga | 180 km (112 mi) | Ángel López del Álamo (ESP)
| ||
| 14 | 8 May | Torrelavega – Gijón | 178 km (111 mi) | Bernardo Alfonsel (ESP)
| ||
| 15 | 9 May | Gijón – León | 156 km (97 mi) | Lucien Van Impe (BEL)
| ||
| 16a | 10 May | León – Valladolid | 134 km (83 mi) | Adri van Houwelingen (NED)
| ||
| 16b | 10 May | Valladolid – Valladolid | 22 km (14 mi) |
|
Individual time trial | Alfons De Wolf (BEL)
|
| 17 | 11 May | Valladolid – Ávila | 204 km (127 mi) | Francisco Albelda (ESP)
| ||
| 18a | 12 May | Ávila – Colmenar Viejo | 155 km (96 mi) | Miguel María Lasa (ESP)
| ||
| 18b | 12 May | Colmenar Viejo – Azuqueca de Henares | 104 km (65 mi) | Cees Bal (NED)
| ||
| 19 | 13 May | Madrid – Madrid | 84 km (52 mi) | Alfons De Wolf (BEL)
| ||
| Total | 3,373 km (2,096 mi) | |||||
Results edit
Final General Classification edit
| Rank | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joop Zoetemelk |
Miko–Mercier | 94h 57' 03" |
| 2 | Francisco Galdós |
Kas–Campagnolo | + 2' 43" |
| 3 | Michel Pollentier |
Splendor–Euro Soap | + 3' 21" |
| 4 | Faustino Rupérez |
Moliner–Vereco | + 5' 51" |
| 5 | Lucien Van Impe |
Kas–Campagnolo | + 6' 30" |
| 6 | Pedro Torres |
Transmallorca–Flavia | + 6' 49" |
| 7 | Felipe Yáñez |
Novostil–Helios | + 7' 41" |
| 8 | Christian Seznec |
Miko–Mercier | + 8' 03" |
| 9 | Fons De Wolf |
Boule d'Or–Lano | + 10' 01" |
| 10 | Julián Andiano |
Moliner–Vereco | + 10' 52" |
| 11 | Miguel María Lasa |
Moliner–Vereco | |
| 12 | Vicente López Carril |
Teka | |
| 13 | Raymond Martin |
Miko–Mercier | |
| 14 | Alberto Fernández |
Moliner–Vereco | |
| 15 | Herman Beysens |
Splendor–Euro Soap | |
| 16 | Manuel Esparza Sanz |
Teka | |
| 17 | Vicente Belda |
Transmallorca–Flavia | |
| 18 | José Pesarrodona |
Teka | |
| 19 | Ángel Arroyo |
Moliner–Vereco | |
| 20 | Juan Pujol Pages |
Transmallorca–Flavia | |
| 21 | Ismael Lejarreta |
Novostil–Helios | |
| 22 | Carlos Melero |
Moliner–Vereco | |
| 23 | Bernardo Alfonsel |
Kas–Campagnolo | |
| 24 | Jesús Suárez |
Kas–Campagnolo | |
| 25 | Gonzalo Aja Barguin |
Novostil–Helios |
References edit
- ^ "Clasificaciones Oficiales" (PDF). El Mundo Deportivo. 14 May 1979. p. 36. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 November 2020.
- ^ "1979 » 34th Vuelta a Espana". Procyclingstats. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
- ^ "34ème Vuelta a España 1979". Memoire du cyclisme (in French). Archived from the original on 25 October 2004.