Volta a Portugal: Angolan Team In Top 10.
The Tour of Portugal by bicycle began in earnest and, after the second stage between the cities of Abrantes and Vila Franca de Xira, held this past Friday, August 11, 2025, the winner was again the Venezuelan Leangel Rubén Linarez (Tavfer -Ovos Matinados-Mortágua), stage in which Francisco Campos of the Angolan team BAI-Sicasal-Petro de Luanda, finished in 10th place.
The Angolan Participation in the Tour of Portugal
Among the participating teams, BAI-Sicasal-Petro from Luanda is the only African representative. Although the team started with Angolan cyclists, such as Daniel Paiva and Hosana Gonçalves, both faced difficulties and left the competition. The Portuguese cyclist Francisco Campos stood out in the Angolan team, winning 10th place in this stage.
Francisco Campos expressed his satisfaction with the result in the top 10 and shared his efforts in remaining competitive during a challenging sprint in the second stage of the Tour of Portugal by bicycle.
While the Spaniard Mikel Mujika occupied the 55th position in the general classification for the Angolan team, Francisco Campos was optimistic with his performance, after having been in fifth place on Thursday, he obtained tenth place on Friday, and this Saturday, the stage is a sprint, more adapted to its characteristics, therefore, considering the limitations of the team, it stated:
“After being in the fight on Thursday, I left confident on Friday”.
“I knew it was a sprint that didn't fit my characteristics but I tried to be in the fight”.
“It was a lottery and without a leadout it becomes even more difficult. But I'm happy for the top 10”.
“This Saturday, another sprint day, much more for my characteristics”.
“Different from the first two days, it will be a much more selective sprint, let's see if the pure sprinters will hold up to this end”.
Francisco Campos shared his impressions of the challenging conditions of the Volta a Portugal, mentioning the heat and length of the stages. He also highlighted the team's collaboration and the role of riders like Mikel Mujika and Pablo García.
The Yellow Jersey of the Tour of Portugal
The Venezuelan cyclist Leangel Rubén Linarez maintained his winning streak, crossing the finish line in first place, beating the Spanish competitor Miguel Ángel Fernández, from the Burgos-BH team, and the Czech Daniel Babor, from Caja Rural-Seguros RGA. The stage covered a distance of 177,3 kilometers between Abrantes and Vila Franca de Xira.
Linarez started the Tour of Portugal well, thanks to his ability as a sprinter and thanks to the strength of the Tavfer-Ovos Matinados-Mortágua team, which is excelling in the sprint stages and leads the general classification with merit.
After this stage, Linarez took the lead in the individual general classification, wearing the yellow jersey. He was ahead of Czech cyclist Daniel Babor by seven seconds and Portugal's Rafael Reis, of the Glassdrive Q8 Anicolor, by ten seconds.
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See also:
Cycling: Tour of Portugal with Angolan Team
Picture: © 2023 BAI-Sicasal-Petro de Luanda
