HIGHLIGHTS: Rupp wins Row River Half, Carapaz back in front at La Vuelta, more ISL wins for Gastaldello

New Vuelta a Espana leader Richard Carapaz (ECU)

Headline results of noteworthy competitions around the world:

Athletics ● U.S. distance star Galen Rupp won the Row River Half Marathon in Dorena, Oregon on Friday, winning in 60:23 and setting a U.S. road record for 10 miles along the way.

His time of 45:54 shattered the existing mark of 46:13 by Greg Meyer from way back in 1983. Rupp’s winning time is the eighth-fastest U.S. Half Marathon performance ever (he has run 59:47 previously) and was well ahead of runner-up Suguru Osako of Japan (61:16).

Cycling ● The 75th Vuelta a Espana ran through two difficult mountain stages over the weekend, with Ecuador’s Richard Carapaz re-taking a small lead over defending champion Primoz Roglic (SLO).

The two were tied heading into Saturday’s four-climb, 170.0 km ride from Villaviciosa to the Alta de la Farrapona, with an uphill finish. The winner was David Gaudu of France, who managed a four-second margin over Marc Soler (ESP), with no one else within another 48 seconds. Carapaz and Roglic finished together in ninth and 10th place, so they stayed tied into Sunday’s punishment.

Stage 12 was a five-climb route of 109.4 km, with the hills getting bigger and bigger and then finishing with a formidable climb to the Alto de l’Angliru at 1,555 m! Britain’s Hugh Carthy, still a contender for the overall title, won in 3:08:40, 16 seconds clear of Aleksandr Vlasov (RUS), Enric Mas (ESP) and Carapaz in fourth. But Roglic was another 10 seconds back in fifth and so Carapaz, the 2019 Giro d’Italia winner, is back in front and wearing the Maglia Rosa alone. Carthy is third, 32 seconds back and Dan Martin (IRL) is 35 seconds behind.

Monday is a rest day, followed by a mean Individual Time Trial of 33.7 km, with an uphill finish to the Mirador a Ezaro. Roglic should be strong here, but how much do any of the riders have left for the final week?

The UCI Mountain Bike World Cup continued with a Downhill-only program in Lousa, Portugal, with two races for both men and women, that determined the seasonal standings.

The men’s races went to Greg Minnaar (RSA) and Loic Bruni (FRA), but it was Britain’s Matt Walker who took his first seasonal title. Walker was runner-up in the first race, with Bruni third and Americans Aaron Gwin third and Dakotah Norton fourth. On Sunday, it was Bruni, Minnaar and Walker as the top three. Over the four races in the 2020 “season,” Walker’s consistency mattered most, as he finished with 687 points to 677 for Bruni and 627 for Minnaar.

The women’s events saw a French sweep, with Myriam Nicole and Marine Cabirou winning and Cabirou claiming the seasonal crown. Nicole, Cabirou and Tahnee Seagrave (AUS) were 1-2-3 on Saturday and then Cabirou, Nina Hoffmann (GER) and Seagrave won Sunday’s medals. With Nicole only fourth, Cabirou piled up 825 seasonal points to outdistance Nicole (775) and Hoffmann (664) in the seasonal standings.

SwimmingMatch 5 of the International Swimming League was completed on Halloween, with the London Roar taking a tight win over the L.A. Current and Tokyo Frog Kings, 499.0-478.5-446.5.

The big winner was once against France’s Beryl Gastaldello, who won four times, in the 50-100 m Fly and 50-100 m Free for the L.A. Current. Other multiple event winners:

● Guilherme Guido (BRA): Men’s 50-100 m Back
● Tom Shields (USA): Men’s 100-200 m Fly, 50 m Fly Skins

● Alia Atkinson (JAM): Women’s 50-100 m Breast, 50 Breast Skins
● Yui Ohashi (JPN): Women’s 200-400 m Medley
● Kira Toussaint (NED): Women’s 50-100 m Back

Match 6 concludes on Monday.