Foray into the Asturcantabro Tournament with the Alto de La Cabruñana on the road to Grado

VII Trofeo Santiago y Santa Ana
Grado-Grado (84 km)

The recovered Asturcantabro Tournament returns this weekend in the town of Grado and the U19 structure of the Contador Foundation travels to the Asturian council. The Trofeo Santiago y Santa Ana hosts the second round of a competition composed for this season 2022 by nine races.

Joel Díaz, Álex García, Pedro García, Alem Herráiz, Gergo Magyar, Iván Polo, David Puente and Manuel Sanroma are the eight riders called by Guillermo Gutiérrez for a race with a very broken profile in which stand out the passages through Cabruñana, La Doriga and Aces in its last third, renewed and surely decisive.

The race promoted by the Santi Pérez Mirador del Nalón Cycling Academy was born in the context of the local patron saint festivities, in July, and until now it has been held either at the end of June (2019) or in that month; now, after the forced break of the COVID-19, two complicated years, it moves its date to return to the asphalt.

The Alto de La Cabruñana is the great orographic difficulty of the Trophy. Almost six kilometres of very constant ascent with a gradient of around 5%-6%, although occasionally there are higher percentages. Its descent towards Cornellana, which is not complete, gives way to a final stage on narrower, twisty and unruly roads where the climbs to La Doriga and Aces have to be managed.