Richard Carapaz creates history for Ecuador

TOKYO: Richard Carapaz took gold in the Tokyo Olympic road race to give Ecuador its first cycling medal in the Olympics.

The 28-year-old mountain man, known in the men's professional peloton as La Locomotora by dint of his relentless engine, shrugged off everything the elite field could throw at home before launching a solo bid for glory.

Better known as a climbing specialist with his Ineos Grenadiers team, Carapaz powered home like a Formula One car on the Fuji International Speedway to leave his rivals trailing a minute behind him in his tracks.

It was a masterful performance and will go down in Ecuador's sporting folklore as he delivered only the country's second Olympic gold medal after Jefferson Perez's victory in the race walking event at Atlanta in 1996. Agencies

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