Van Aert takes second stage win at Spanish Vuelta and O’Connor keeps overall lead

CORDOBA, Spain (AP) — Wout van Aert grabbed his second stage win at this edition of the Spanish Vuelta on Friday, while Ben O’Connor kept his commanding overall lead.

Van Aert added to his win on Stage 3 with another dominant performance to take the seventh stage. The Belgian rider sprinted to claim the 180.5-kilometer (112-mile) ride from Archidona to Cordoba in 4 hours, 15 minutes. Mathias Vacek was second.

Van Aert, who rides for Visma Lease-a-Bike, won bronze at the Paris Olympics in the time trial last month.

O’Connor retained his lead of 4 minutes, 45 seconds over three-time winner Primoz Roglic, his nearest chaser. The Australian rider turned the race on its head on Thursday by winning the stage several minutes ahead of the rest of the pack.

Saturday’s eighth stage is a 159-kilometer (99-mile) hilly ride from Ubeda to Cazorla.

The 21-stage race finishes in Madrid on Sept. 8.

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