Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) added a second victory at the Colombian National Championships in Bucaramanga on Sunday, taking out the elite men's road race with a solo attack in the hilly 237-kilometre race.
Diego Camargo (Medellin-EPM) and Kevin Castillo (Team Sistercredito) rounded out the podium.
On Thursday, Bernal claimed his first race win since suffering a life-threatening accident in 2022, emerging victorious in the elite men's time trial at the Colombian National Championships in Bucaramanga on Thursday.
Bernal had considered giving up his professional cycling career following the accident in which he rode head-first into a stopped city bus while training on his time trial bike. However, he slowly worked his way back into race fitness over the past two seasons.
"1347 days and a lot has happened since my last win, today NATIONAL TT CHAMPION," said Bernal in a social media post. "I thought about retiring several times but one day I promised that if I won again, the first one would be dedicated to God for giving me a second chance at life.
"A lot of people are a part of this process and today I just want to say thank you."
Last year, Bernal showed he was nearly back to full form, landing on the final podium in third at the O Grand Camiño and Volta a Catalunya stage races. He was also fourth in the final GC of the Tour de Suisse.
Bernal scorched the 42.2-kilometre time trial to win his second Colombian title in 50:51 (49.794kph), seven seconds quicker than Walter Vargas (Team Medellin-EPM) and 29 seconds ahead of third-placed Brandon Rivera (Ineos Grenadiers).
The 28-year-old last won a national championship in 2018 when he beat Dani Martinez to the time trial title.
According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Bernal should be arriving soon to Europe to begin his season with Ineos Grenadiers, racing at the Clásica Jaén, Vuelta Ciclista Andalucía-Ruta del Sol, Strade Bianche and Tirreno-Adriatico.
Road Race Results
TT Results
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