On stage 3 of La Vuelta Femenina, Mireia Benito (AG Insurance-Surdal) had no intention of riding alone at the front for more than 3 hours. She was only caught by the peloton with 7.5 km to go.

"The first tricky descent was really wet and slippery. I was hoping that maybe someone would join me after a few kilometers, but unfortunately I was alone for the rest of the day.

"But I wanted to make it to the end, or at least as far as possible.

For the first hour of the 130.2-km stage, the Spanish time trial champion's advantage was less than a minute, but eventually ballooned to more than five minutes, and as he ticked off each kilometer, the 27-year-old was encouraged by the cheers of fans along the roadside.

"It was crazy. I was so happy to hear my name. It was a great motivation, especially when I saw all the kids, the young kids, screaming my name. It was a great feeling. I wanted to cry in a good way. It kept my motivation high to keep pushing until the end," she said.

The 27-year-old Spanish rider finished well behind the leading group, with the same time as stage 3 winner Marianne Vos (Visma-Ries-A-Bike). Benito won the day's Combat of the Day award and will wear the white Combat of the Day jersey on stage 4.

After the stage, Benito also paid tribute to a childhood friend who passed away last year. She said, "A childhood friend of mine passed away a year ago. In the first few kilometers of the stage, I felt like she was running with me and decided to send her a little kiss."

Benito also said, "I was so sad to see her go.

The 2024 La Vuelta Femenina is the second edition of the rebranded event, which will be held in late April and early May as part of Spain's boom in women's cycling. Benito is pleased to be able to inspire the younger generation by her example.

"I think we are taking steps in the right direction. More and more young girls are coming to the buses and campers to say hello. It's so, so neat to see their eyes light up when they see you and say, 'Wow, you're a professional cyclist.' [And I'm so happy to be able to talk to them and show them that there is this way of life, this way of work. It's great that they can dream big and look to people like Mavi [Garcia], people like us," Benito explained.

The Vuelta Femenina is Benito's first stage race of the road season. She won one race in 2024, the Gravel Tres Cantos, a Spanish off-road race by Specialized.