Rubén Plaza

This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Plaza and the second or maternal family name is Molina.
Rubén Plaza

Plaza at the 2010 Tour de France
Personal information
Full name Rubén Plaza Molina
Born (1980-02-29) 29 February 1980
Ibi, Spain
Height 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Weight 77 kg (170 lb; 12.1 st)
Team information
Current team Orica–BikeExchange
Discipline Road
Role Rider
Rider type Climber
Professional team(s)
2001–2003 iBanesto.com
2004–2006 Comunidad Valenciana–Kelme
2007 Caisse d'Epargne
2008 Benfica
2009 Liberty Seguros
2010–2014 Caisse d'Epargne
2015 Lampre–Merida
2016– Orica–BikeExchange
Major wins

Grand Tours

Tour de France
1 individual stage (2015)
Vuelta a España
2 individual stages (2005, 2015)

Stage races

Vuelta a Castilla y León (2013)

Single-day races and Classics

National Road Race Championships (2003, 2009)
Infobox last updated on
30 January 2016

Rubén Plaza Molina (born 29 February 1980) is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for Orica–BikeExchange.[1] He turned professional in 2001 with iBanesto.com, before moving to Comunidad Valenciana–Kelme. Here he enjoyed his greatest success, with a stage win and a top 5 overall placing in the 2005 Vuelta a España.

Career

Plaza was born in Ibi, Spain. In 2006 he was implicated in the Operación Puerto doping scandal, but was later acquitted of any involvement. Nevertheless, after an abridged 2007 season with Caisse d'Epargne he spent 2008 and 2009 with smaller Continental level teams in Portugal. Despite this, in 2009 he was able to take his second victory in the Spanish national championships, before finishing 4th overall in the Volta a Portugal, a result which was later upgraded to 3rd by the disqualification of his Liberty Seguros teammate Nuno Ribeiro for a doping violation.[2] The simultaneous positive tests of two of the team's other riders caused the team to disband, leaving Plaza without a ride for 2010. Despite being linked to the Astana team, Plaza returned to Caisse d'Epargne, the signing made official in December 2009.[3]

In 2015, he won Stage 16 of the Tour de France, his second Grand Tour stage win.[4]

In 2015, he also won Stage 20 of the Vuelta de España. He was named in the start list for the 2016 Giro d'Italia.[5]

Career achievements

Major results

1997
1st National Under-19 Road Race Championships
2003
1st National Road Race Championships
1st Stage 5 Regio-Tour
2004
1st Stage 5 (ITT) Trofeú Joaquim Agostinho
3rd Trofeo Cala Millor
4th Overall Vuelta a Murcia
6th Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
10th Circuito de Getxo
2005
1st Overall GP Internacional Costa Azul
1st Stage 2
1st Overall Vuelta a Aragón
1st Stage 4 (ITT)
1st Stage 2 Vuelta a Murcia
3rd National Time Trial Championships
4th World Time Trial Championships
5th Overall Vuelta a España
1st Stage 20 (ITT)
5th Klasika Primavera
6th Overall Critérium International
2006
1st Clásica a los Puertos de Guadarrama
2nd Overall Vuelta a La Rioja
2nd National Time Trial Championships
4th Overall Vuelta a Asturias
1st Stage 5
4th Overall Trofeú Joaquim Agostinho
1st Stage 1
2007
1st Overall Vuelta a La Rioja
4th Overall Clasica a Alcobendas
5th Overall Euskal Bizikleta
10th Overall Vuelta a Burgos
2008
1st Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
1st Stage 1 (ITT) Vuelta a la Comunidad de Madrid
2nd National Time Trial Championships
3rd Overall Volta a Portugal
1st Prologue (ITT)
9th Overall Volta ao Algarve
2009
1st National Road Race Championships
1st Stage 2 GP CTT Correios de Portugal
2nd Overall Vuelta a Murcia
1st Stage 4
3rd Overall Volta ao Algarve
3rd Overall Volta a Portugal
1st Stage 6[lower-alpha 1]
3rd National Time Trial Championships
4th Overall Circuit de Lorraine
1st Stage 3
2010
3rd National Time Trial Championships
11th Overall Tour de France
14th Overall Vuelta a España
2012
10th Overall Circuit de la Sarthe
2013
1st Overall Vuelta a Castilla y León
1st Stage 3
3rd National Time Trial Championships
4th Vuelta a la Comunidad de Madrid
6th Overall Route du Sud
9th Overall Vuelta a Asturias
2015
1st Stage 16 Tour de France
Vuelta a España
1st Stage 20
Combativity award Stage 20

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

Grand Tour 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Pink jersey Giro 56
Yellow jersey Tour 11 101 47 91 30 72
golden jersey Vuelta 5 14 45

WD = Withdrew; In Progress = IP

Notes

  1. The original winner, Eladio Jiménez, was later suspended for use of EPO and testosterone. The victory was awarded to Plaza, who had originally finished second.

References

Media related to Rubén Plaza at Wikimedia Commons

Sporting positions
Preceded by
Alejandro Valverde
Spanish National Road Race Champion
2009
Succeeded by
José Ivan Gutierrez
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