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Spanish rider Enric Mas secured his first Vuelta a Espana title on Sunday as Tobias Johannessen won the 21st and final stage in Granada, bringing the three-week Grand Tour to a close.The 31-year-old Movistar rider, who took the red jersey after Tadej Pogacar abandoned following a crash on stage eight, held off four-time champion Primoz Roglic to become the first Spaniard to win the Vuelta since Alberto Contador in 2014.Home favourite Mas, a three-time Vuelta runner-up, finished 2mins 15sec ahead of Roglic in the general classification, with Felix Gall third, a further half-minute behind.Mas crossed the finish line arm-in-arm with his six Movistar team-mates stretched out beside him.It was the Spaniard's first ever Grand Tour triumph, which he effectively sealed by reducing losses to Roglic in the individual time-trial on Thursday and then expanding his lead on Saturday in the last mountain stage.Norwegian Johannessen prevailed in the 112-kilometre final stage, which started in a supermarket and featured a series of loops through Granada and around the famous Alhambra palace.The Uno-X Mobility rider held off Alessandro Romele and Ramses Debruyne in a sprint finish.The last 9.8km of the race was neutralised earlier on Sunday in agreement with the UCI after riders raised safety concerns, so for the general classification contenders it was a procession to the finish line.Mas inherited the red jersey from Pogacar after the Slovenian superstar, who was overwhelming favourite to triumph and win the Vuelta for the first time, suffered a severe crash which ended his season.Five-time Tour de France winner Pogacar was hoping to become only the fourth rider to claim a Tour-Vuelta double in the same season.A runner-up in 2018, 2021 and 2022, Mas fended off attacks from veteran Roglic and Gall along the way and proved a worthy winner, rising to every challenge. 

Irishman Eddie Dunbar won Friday's 19th stage of the Vuelta a Espana as Spaniard Enric Mas maintained his overall lead with only one mountain stage remaining before Sunday's finale.The 30-year-old caught and passed Colombian Santiago Buitrago with just 300 metres left of the mountainous 210km slog from Velez-Malaga to Penas Blancas."It's incredible, I really didn't expect this today," said Dunbar."I even said in the team radio after about 50 or 60km that today wasn't my day."I wasn't feeling good. Then I ended up in the break and my legs came around a bit."Buitrago struck out for home inside the final two kilometres to distance his three breakaway companions, including Dunbar, who initially did not react.But the Pinarello Q36.5 rider launched his counter attack in the final kilometre and wasted little time in reeling in Buitrago, who is the leader of the King of the Mountains competition.Dunbar finished 14sec ahead of Buitrago, with his British team-mate, Thomas Gloag coming home in third 23sec back.They had been part of an initial 16-man breakaway which only escaped around halfway through a chaotic stage, but then broke up on the final climb to the finish.Mas comfortably held onto his 1min 37sec lead over four-time former champion Primoz Roglic as the overall contenders crossed the line together.Roglic's Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe team and the EF Education-Easypost outfit of former Giro d'Italia winner Richard Carapaz tried to increase the pace on the 18km final climb to the finish.But they were unable to exert any pressure on Mas, who followed comfortably as he bids for a first Vuelta title after three previous second-place finishes. 

Slovenian 20-year-old Jakob Omrzel climbed to victory on stage 12 of the Vuelta a Espana on Thursday as Spain's Enric Mas extended his overall lead on a tough mountain stage.In a landmark performance, Omrzel, of the Bahrain Victorious team, also leapt up the overall standings, evoking memories of his countryman Tadej Pogacar's showing in his first Grand Tour in 2019. Omrzel jumped to sixth overall, just 30sec behind Briton Oscar Onley in the best young rider white jersey category. Onley fell early in the stage and finished over five minutes adrift of the winner."I can't believe what I did, but I felt super good. I'm still feeling okay. I'm not tired. So I'm just enjoying it at the moment," Omrzel said. Three major mountain stages remain in an enthralling 21-day race.Pogacar was six months older than Omrzel when he came third and won three stages in the 2019 edition of the Vuelta.Movistar rider Mas finished 2min 56sec adrift of the winner but extended his olead over Primoz Roglic by 27 seconds to 1 minute and 45 seconds. Four-time champion Roglic, another Slovenian, crossed the line with Felix Gall, who is third overall.Mas had several Movistar team members around him over the early climbs. "We did two training camps here, and I enjoyed it today more than in winter. It's 27 seconds, and that could be very important in the final week. It was a long day, but I'm happy with what we achieved here," said the 31-year-old.The Vuelta returned to the mountains on stage 12 with a run of 166km that was contested in searing heat over five climbs to Calar Alto. Mas has won the Vuelta white jersey twice, in 2018 and 2020, and is set for his first Grand Tour win if he can hold on.Pogacar was leading the Vuelta by almost four minutes but crashed out on stage eight, breaking a collarbone in what may be a season-ending injury. The race ends in Andalusia next weekend with stages in the mountains and hills around Malaga and Granada's Sierra Nevada.

Spain's Enric Mas made a late attack on the climb to Alto de Aitana to win stage nine of the Vuelta a Espana on Sunday, as the Movistar rider retained his overall lead and the red jersey. Mas, who took the lead after Tadej Pogacar crashed out on Saturday, lived up to the red jersey as he won his first Grand Tour stage since 2018, preserving his energy throughout the mountainous ride and flawlessly executing the final attack.Briton Oscar Onley (Netcompany Ineos) followed Mas into the final kilometre but lost the sprint to the finish line and had to settle for second place. Slovenian Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), who is second in the overall standings, came in third. Four-time Vuelta winner Roglic trails Mas by a minute and 18 seconds in the general classification. Felix Gall, who finished fourth on the day, remained third overall. LEADERS IGNORE EARLY MOVESHours before the ninth stage began, Roglic's compatriot Pogacar posted a picture of himself in a hospital bed on Instagram, set to the 1977 song "Stayin' Alive" by the Bee Gees. Mas, wearing the red jersey for the first time, stayed in the peloton along with his closest general classification competitors as they ignored early attacks.By the time the riders started the climactic 22 km climb to Alto de Aitana, several breakaway riders had split into groups, with Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammate Pavel Sivakov and Marcel Camprubi (Pinarello-Q36.5) leading the charge four minutes ahead of the peloton. Sivakov, who finished ninth in 2024, pushed ahead with 10 km remaining, as Camprubi scrambled to follow the Frenchman.MAS ATTACKSHalfway up the climb, about 20 riders including Mas and other red jersey contenders were rapidly reducing the gap to the runaway leader, with Gall's Decathlon CMA CGM teammate Gregor Muehlberger setting the pace.With just a minute between them and Sivakov, Gall attacked and others including Mas and Roglic followed. They caught Sivakov and effortlessly moved past him as Santiago Buitrago launched an attack with about four kilometres left in the stage.Soon after, Mas launched his own attack as Oscar Onley kept up with him, while Roglic followed them into the final kilometre. Mas, who had refused to celebrate or wear the red jersey on Saturday after Pogacar's crash, finally celebrated as he crossed the finish line, raising his arm to cheering spectators, with Onley just behind him. The race continues on Tuesday with a hilly 184.7 km ride from Alcaraz to Elche de la Sierra. 

Deal endorses establishment of Centre of Excellence and Support for FinTech in Doha, serving as a dynamic platform that energises fintech community both locally and regionallyQatar Development Bank (QDB), represented by the Qatar FinTech Hub (QFTH), announced the signing of a strategic co-operation agreement with the Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN), an initiative by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).The agreement was signed by QDB CEO Abdulrahman bin Hesham al-Sowaidi, who is also QFTH chairman, and GFTN Group CEO Sopnendu Mohanty, on the sidelines of the ‘Singapore FinTech Festival’.It establishes a long-term framework for collaboration in policy innovation, ecosystem enablement, capacity building, and the exchange of knowledge and best practices in financial technology.The agreement endorsed the establishment of a Centre of Excellence and Support for FinTech in Doha, serving as a dynamic platform that energises the fintech community both locally and regionally. The centre will work to deliver strategic insights and pioneering research on transformative financial technologies and their impact on markets, from Africa and Central Asia to the Gulf Co-operation Council countries.It will further contribute to strengthening collaboration between regulators, financial institutions, and innovators to develop inclusive and forward-looking policy frameworks that support emerging economies, in addition to advancing capacity building through specialised training programmes, knowledge transfer, and dedicated workshops across the financial sector.The agreement also stipulated collaborating and coordinating on establishing a ‘Qatar FinTech Forum’ in the future, to serve as an annual international fintech event held as an extension of the ‘Singapore FinTech Festival’, aimed at advancing the future of financial technology in Qatar and the region.Doha was selected as the permanent host of the forum due to its position as one of the fastest-growing fintech ecosystems in the region, and as a strategic bridge linking the Middle East with the global digital economy.The forum will be a platform for exchanging expertise and ideas among policymakers, regulators, financial institutions, investors, entrepreneurs, and academia from across continents, to discuss the future of innovation and business in fintech.Al-Sowaidi said, “Our partnership with the Global Finance & Technology Network reflects our deep commitment to positioning Qatar as a global centre of excellence for financial innovation. This aligns with the objectives of the Third Financial Sector Strategic Plan and the Qatar FinTech Strategy led by Qatar Central Bank.”Al-Sowaidi added: “Through this partnership, benefiting from GFTN’s global expertise in policy innovation and digital transformation, we aim to build on the strong momentum the country is witnessing in developing local fintech capabilities, attract world-class innovators to Qatar, and strengthen the financial ecosystem to serve as a bridge connecting local capacity with global opportunity.“This partnership builds on Qatar’s robust digital infrastructure and thriving business environment, which have witnessed remarkable progress in recent years. We believe it will play a pivotal role in driving sustainable growth in the fintech sector, supporting economic diversification efforts, and advancing the long-term ambitions of Qatar National Vision 2030.”Mohanty said, “Qatar’s bold innovation agenda provides fertile ground for global collaboration. Together with QDB’s deep commitment to entrepreneurship, innovation, and national capacity building, we are creating a platform that connects capital, policy, technology, and talent into an engine for accelerated and inclusive digital growth across Mena.”The partnership builds on the growing collaboration between Qatar and Singapore, combining both nations’ fintech expertise to advance cross-border innovation, investment, and knowledge exchange. It reinforces Qatar’s position as a leading regional hub for fintech excellence, aligned with national strategies that support sustainable, technology-driven economic growth.

Bolivians have elected Rodrigo Paz of the center-right Christian Democratic Party (PDC) as their new president, ending nearly two decades of rule by the Movement for Socialism (MAS) party.With 97% of ballots counted, Paz secured 54.5% of the vote in Sunday's run-off, according to figures released by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE).Paz is scheduled to take office on November 8, succeeding outgoing President Luis Arce, who chose not to seek re-election after a five-year term marked by Bolivia's worst economic crisis in four decades.The country is currently grappling with a severe fuel shortage caused by collapsing gas exports and dwindling foreign currency reserves, which have pushed inflation above 23% and led to long queues at fuel stations.Paz's economic platform focuses on cutting government spending, particularly fuel subsidies, while encouraging private-sector expansion and implementing a model of "capitalism for all" based on decentralization and fiscal discipline before resorting to new borrowing.