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Fabio Felline crossed the line in 20th place in stage 21 at the 2016 Vuelta a Espana on Sunday to win the overall in the points competition.
Although Felline never reached his goal of a stage victory, his persistence netted him a second place in stage five, followed with four thirds that included two mountain summit finishes, pushing him into the points competition fight.
"I never did get a victory in a stage, but for me to have the green jersey is like a victory," said Felline. "I think it's a good reward for all the things that I did in this Vuelta. Sometimes it is difficult to win because it was a super strong Vuelta, and always I found myself in a breakaway with climbers stronger than me."
With his eye on the green jersey starting one week ago, Felline finally grabbed the lead in the competition with his incredible third place in stage 20 after a tenacious fight on the final mountain climb of the three-week race.
Felline was never threatened in the final stage and sprinted safely across the line with the peloton to secure the green jersey.
"Today I saw all my teammates focused for this jersey and they were always close to me in the race. It motivated me to see them focused on one goal today," said Felline. "It was strange; never did I feel the sensation during the race that this jersey is mine. The legs were not super for a good sprint; I felt the effort of yesterday.
"In the finish, I did not have great legs, and I saw Valverde in the front, and I thought I need to give the maximum. Finally, though, he did not do the sprint, and I only needed to finish safely to defend the jersey.
"This jersey is not just for me, but for the whole team, and all the people who stayed close to me after I crashed in Amstel Gold. It's easy to stay close with people when things are good, but when there are problems, you are always alone. This jersey is not a victory, but it is a big value for me, and I want to dedicate it to the people who supported me during this time."
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