Egan Bernal seals Giro d'Italia ahead of Damiano Caruso and Simon Yates

Sunday May 30 – Senago to Milan, 30.3km (time trial)

Egan Bernal sealed overall victory in the Giro d'Italia as his Ineos Grenadiers team-mate Filippo Ganna won the closing time trial in Milan and Simon Yates claimed a podium finish.

Bernal began the 30km race against the clock with a one minute 59 second advantage over Damiano Caruso after the Italian's victory on the Alpe Motta on Saturday, and finished with a final margin of victory of 89 seconds to deliver a second consecutive Giro win for the Grenadiers.

Yates, who had put a scare into Bernal with his attacking approach in the final week, secured third place, four minutes 15 seconds down - his best result yet in a race he has consistently targeted since his Vuelta a Espana-winning season in 2018.

Bernal knew he simply needed to stay calm - and stay upright - to see the job through before he could celebrate in the shadow of Milan's Duomo.

"I was just focused on my effort, thinking I can't do a mistake, I don't want to lose the Giro in one corner," he said.

"I was starting to push in the parts where I could push but in the corners I don't take any risks. I think it was the first time trial I enjoyed. I always suffer in the time trials but today was a special one.

"There were a lot of Colombian flags and all the people cheering for me when I arrived and I realised I had won it was an incredible feeling. I cannot describe what I'm feeing inside of me."

Bernal - who earned his first professional contract in Italy as a teenager - adds the Giro title to his Tour de France crown from 2019, but the 24-year-old has had to show much more maturity over the past three weeks.

Where two years ago he was thrust into yellow on a chaotic weather-shortened stage 19 of the Tour, effectively needing to defend it for only a brief stage 20, Sunday was his 12th day in pink at the Giro.

In that time he has faced attacks from rivals and questions over his long-standing back injury, but never looked seriously vulnerable.

Yates had been the man to do most of the probing, taking 53 seconds out of the Colombian on stage 17, then another 28 seconds on Friday.

Though his challenge faded on the penultimate day, a podium finish remains an encouraging result for the 28-year-old Lancastrian.

Ganna defied a puncture to take the stage victory with a time of 33 minutes 48 seconds, bookending the race after his win in the opening time trial, but it would surely have been a different story had Remi Cavagna - who finished 12 seconds down - not crashed in the final kilometre of his own ride.

"When you see the puncture you think I've lost the race, but I knew I had a good gap to the second rider so I changed the bike really fast, like a Formula One race," the 24-year-old said.

"Then I had to wait for Cavagna because he is a really good time triallist. I saw this crash and I thought, 'OK, we've played with the same cards today' because without my puncture and his crash the result would be the same I think." PA

Stage 20: Bernal on verge of sealing overall victory

Saturday May 29 – Verbania to Valle Spluga-Alpe Motta, 164km

Egan Bernal stands on the verge of Giro d'Italia glory after surviving Saturday's brutal mountain stage with almost two minutes of an advantage to take into the closing time trial in Milan.

Damiano Caruso, Bernal's closest challenger in the general classification, celebrated a fine stage victory – his first individual grand tour stage win – to increase his hold on a surprise second place, but victory by 24 seconds was not the sort of margin needed to shake the Ineos Grenadiers rider.

And Simon Yates was unable to make any impact as he lost the Colombian's wheel two kilometres from the summit of the final climb of the Alpe Motta, conceding 27 seconds in the process. That leaves the Lancastrian one minute 24 seconds behind Caruso as he looks likely to settle for third place overall.

Although there are 30 flat kilometres still to negotiate, with a lead of one minute 59 seconds few will bet against Bernal adding Giro glory to the Tour de France title he took in 2019, further confirmation of the 24-year-old's prestigious talent.

"I'm satisfied with the result," Bernal said. "I think we managed well the situation finally. We have two minutes of an advantage for tomorrow's time trial so I think we are in a good position.

"It's not the best to have the rider second in GC in front you by almost one minute but having three team-mates, I tried to use them to arrive as fresh as possible into the last climb and also tomorrow.

"I think we did well but it was difficult to manage the situation."

A Bernal win would also deliver a second consecutive Giro title for Ineos Grenadiers after Tao Geoghegan Hart's win last October.

Bernal came into this brutal day – 164km with two passes at more than 2,000 metres of altitude before the final climb – under considerable pressure after seeing his lead whittled down by Yates on the last two summit finishes, showing signs of weakness as his long-standing back injury gave him grief.

But, just as he had done in the moments when Yates rode away, he handled Saturday's test with calmness and maturity, not to mention the considerable help of team-mate Dani Martínez as Ineos Grenadiers marshalled their resources to control the race.

Though most eyes were on Yates after his recent exploits, it was Caruso who tried his hand. The 33-year-old came to the race as a domestique for Mikel Landa, but since the Spaniard's stage five crash Caruso has grasped his opportunity to lead the team and ride his way onto the podium.

His attack would certainly have worried Bernal as a 10-man group formed and built an advantage of around 50 seconds. But gradually the group whittled down before Caruso's Bahrain Victorious team-mate Pello Bilbao pulled off with 6.5km to go, leaving him alone with Romain Bardet.

The Frenchman proved unable to offer much help however, allowing Bernal to slowly ride his way back at a pace which proved too much for Yates.

Though the pink jersey proved beyond him, a stage victory in his home grand tour was no mere consolation for Caruso, who has enjoyed a race beyond his wildest expectations. "I thought about a thousand things in the last meters before the finish line," Caruso said. "All my sacrifices, my training, and all the work done by my team-mates.

"We rode in an exemplary way today, Pello Bilbao in particular did an incredible job and he played a fundamental role in this victory. Today I realised a dream, I think I am the happiest man in the world."
PA

Stage 19: Bernal takes tentative step closer to sealing pink

Friday May 28 – Abbiategrasso to Alpe di Mera, 166km

Simon Yates of BikeExchange won stage 19 of the Giro d'Italia on Friday, reducing the gap in the general classification to leader Egan Bernal, who finished third in the penultimate mountain stage to protect his overall advantage.

Yates finished 11 seconds ahead of Joao Almeida (Deceuninck-Quick Step) in the 166-kilometre ride from Abbiategrasso to Alpe di Mera while Ineos Grenadiers' Bernal was 28 seconds behind to retain the maglia rosa.

Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious) finished four seconds behind Bernal but retains second place on the general classification ahead of Yates in third.

Yates attacked with about 6.5 kilometres to go and left Almeida and Bernal behind to take victory on the climb, giving him an opportunity to finish second in the general classification over the weekend.

Bernal is 2min 29sec ahead of Caruso and 2min 49sec ahead of Yates heading into Saturday's stage 20, a 163-kilometre ride from Valle Spluga to Alpe Motta. Reuters

Stage 18: Yates ready to pounce if Bernal slips up

Thursday May 27 – Rovereto to Stradella, 231km

By Tom Cary

It has been a hit-and-miss Giro d’Italia this year. Some good days, some quiet ones, a lot of bad weather. But it could be a spectacular finish this weekend.

Wednesday’s 17th stage changed the dynamic of this race. Having looked utterly invincible, long-time race leader Egan Bernal’s very public wobble on the Sega di Ala alerted his rivals to the fact that the Colombian might not be home and hosed after all.

Bernal only ended up dropping three seconds to his nearest challenger, Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious), in the final reckoning. And the 2019 Tour de France champion still leads by a healthy two minutes 21 seconds from the Italian with just three stages remaining. He remains the overwhelming favourite.

But the way in which Bernal was gapped by British rider Simon Yates (BikeExchange) on the vertiginous final slopes on Wednesday has got everyone wondering. Could Bernal be suffering with his long-standing back injury more than he is letting on? Could the legs be gone? Might Yates yet do this?

It would be some story, given what happened in this race in 2018. On that occasion it was Yates who led for more than two weeks, looking every inch the Giro champion-in-waiting, before imploding spectacularly in the final few days, allowing Chris Froome to win thanks to his solo raid on stage 19.

Admittedly Yates has not looked 100 per cent himself in this race. He ended up clawing back less than a minute of the four-plus minutes he was giving away to Bernal at the start of Wednesday’s stage. And perhaps he does not have the legs himself to really test the Colombian.

But the parallels with 2018 are stark. Like Yates three years ago, Bernal looked spectacular in the first fortnight of this race, riding in cavalier fashion, sprinting for intermediate bonus seconds, applying his foot to the throat of his rivals whenever and wherever he could.

When he rode away from everyone on the Giau on Monday, arriving at the finish and slowing to take off his rain cape, no-handed, on wet slippery cobbles, so that he could display the maglia rosa, it looked for all the world as if the race was over.

But there is blood in the water now. And, after a holding day on Thursday which saw Italy's Alberto Bettiol (EF Education-Nippo) take victory from the breakaway, there are three huge stages coming up where his rivals could attack.

Friday's 19th stage sees the peloton tackle a summit finish on the Alpe di Mera, the final climb 10km long with the first half at 7-8 per cent and the second at more than 10 per cent. Anyone having an off day will be found out there. Saturday's 20th stage looks even more brutish: 4,300m of vertical gain, including three first category climbs, as the race heads into Switzerland.

The first two climbs, the Passo San Bernardino and then the Splügenpass, are long and not too steep. There is, though, a tricky final 8 per cent ascent to Alpe Motta where again anyone sensing weakness in Bernal might try something.

The race finishes in Milan on Sunday with a 30km time trial. If Yates is within a minute of Bernal there, things could get very interesting. “If I have the legs I will try,” the 28-year-old from Bury promised. "We won’t know until we get there but it’s going to be very difficult."

Bernal, meanwhile, tried to sound calm. "I hope I've recovered well,” he said on Thursday night. “I felt much better on the bike than yesterday and I hope tomorrow will be another good day.

"You can't say you are overconfident because we saw yesterday and in the past years that with one bad day you can lose everything." Yates knows that better than anyone. It is why he will still feel in with a chance.

Stage 17: Bernal survives despite showing hint of weakness

Wednesday May 26 – Canazei to Sega di Ala, 193km

Simon Yates reignited his Giro d'Italia as a late attack found the first signs of weakness in race leader Egan Bernal while Dan Martin took solo victory from a breakaway on stage 17.

Yates recovered from the problems he showed on Monday as he attacked Bernal on the steep gradients of the climb to Sega di Ala, taking 53 seconds out of the Colombian by the summit to spring back in to the podium places.

Yates crossed the line third on the day, 30 seconds after Martin, who took his first Giro stage win to complete his grand tour set as reward for a long day in a breakaway on the 193km run from Canazei.

Yates had looked down and out after he lost more than two minutes on Monday to drop from second to fifth, while Bernal had not put a foot wrong in the race to this point - and had celebrated a fine stage victory 48 hours earlier.

But things looked very different after Tuesday's rest day as Yates attacked four kilometres from the summit. Bernal initially followed but within a kilometre he was struggling to hold the wheel of Ineos Grenadiers team-mate Dani Martínez as Yates skipped away.

With second-placed Damiano Caruso also struggling, the damage to Bernal's overall lead – now two minutes and 21 seconds – was limited to just three seconds, but it remains to be seen if this was a sign of things to come or a temporary blip after the rest day.

BikeExchange's Yates now sits in third, three minutes and 23 seconds back, overhauling Aleksandr Vlasov and Hugh Carthy, who both slipped back and are now more than six minutes down in fourth and fifth respectively.

Martin, racing the Giro for the first time since he crashed out in the opening team time trial in Belfast back in 2014, had seen his own hopes of pink effectively ended on the gravel roads of stage 11.

But he rescued his race in some style here as he hit the climb with an advantage of around 90 seconds and held on ahead of the fireworks behind. PA

Stage 16: Bernal escapes in the snow to tighten grip on pink

Monday May 24 – Sacile to Cortina d’Ampezzo, 153km

Egan Bernal took a major step toward his second grand tour title by winning the wet and mountainous 16th stage of the Giro d'Italia on Monday.

The 2019 Tour de France champion rode alone over the top of the snowy Giau Pass then carefully navigated the technical and wet descent into Cortina d'Ampezzo to add to his overall lead.

Snow and rain throughout the Dolomites prompted organisers to drastically shorten what was slated to be the race's "queen" stage. Instead of a 212-kilometre route over three major mountain passes, the stage followed a 153km route over only one major pass, the Giau.

That was still enough for Bernal to leave his mark. The Colombian attacked on the Giau, caught the last remaining breakaway rider, Antonio Pedrero, and gained time on all of his challengers.

"I wanted to put on a show. This is the type of cycling I like, tough stages like these," Bernal said. "It's a risk but I believed in myself and the team believed in me."

Stage 15: Bernal keeps pink after quiet day in the bunch

Sunday May 23 – Grado to Gorizia, 147km

Victor Campenaerts (Qhubeka-Assos) won stage 15 of the Giro d'Italia at the end of a breakaway, a 147-km bumpy ride from Grado as Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) retained the overall leader's maglia rosa on Sunday.

Campenaerts outsprinted breakaway companion Oscar Riesebeek (Alpecin-Fenix) after the duo had pulled clear late in the stage, which saw Bernal keep the lead with a 1min 33-second advantage over Briton Simon Yates (BikeExchange).

After a body-punishing 14th stage to the Monte Zoncolan, the peloton let the 15-man breakaway loose on what appeared to be a recovery ride for most of the overall contenders after a crash-hit start.

Emanuel Buchmann's (Bora-Hansgrohe) hopes ended in a mass pile-up that forced organisers to neutralise the race for 15 minutes inside the opening three kilometres.

Buchmann, who was sixth overall, abandoned alongside Jos van Emden (Jumbo-Visma) and Natnael Berhane (Cofidis) , with Ruben Guerreiro (EF Education-Nippo) withdrawing later after being unable to cope with the pace of the peloton. Reuters

Stage 14: Bernal extends lead on Monte Zoncolan

Saturday May 22 – Cittadella to Monte Zoncolan, 205km

Lorenzo Fortunato soloed to victory atop the fearsome Monte Zoncolan as Egan Bernal extended his overall lead to more than a minute after the 14th stage of the Giro d'Italia on Saturday.

Fortunato, who rides for Eolo-Kometa, attacked with around two kilometres remaining of the 205-kilometre stage from Cittadella to claim a debut professional win in his first grand tour, at the top of one of the Giro's most prestigious climbs.

It was Fortunato's first victory in more than eight years, having last won as a junior.

Jan Tratnik was second, 26 seconds behind Fortunato. The duo had escaped from the remains of the breakaway shortly after the start of the ascent of the Zoncolan, which was covered in snow. Alessandro Covi was third, 59 seconds behind Fortunato.

Bernal attacked from the peloton in the fog at the summit and finished fourth to extend his overall lead to 1min 33sec ahead of Simon Yates, who moved into second. Bernal, the 2019 Tour de France winner, is 1min 51sec ahead of third-place Damiano Caruso

This year's Giro saw the riders climb the Zoncolan from the easier side. It was still nevertheless one of the most arduous ascents of the race. The last three kilometres had gradients often exceeding 20% and topping out at 27% along the hairpins in the final kilometre. AP

Stage 13: Nizzolo ends long wait for maiden stage win

Friday May 21 – Ravenna to Verona, 198km

Giacomo Nizzolo ended his long wait for a Giro d'Italia stage win as Egan Bernal retained the pink jersey in Verona. Nizzolo, the European and Italian champion, had a record 11 second places without a win in Giro stages, but the Qhubeka-Assos rider finally broke his duck on stage 13 to spark emotional celebrations.

The virtually pan-flat 198km stage from Ravenna was always destined to finish in a sprint, though Jumbo-Visma's Edoardo Affini tried a late dart away from the fast men on the finishing straight before being overhauled by Nizzolo just before the line, ending with second place ahead of Peter Sagan.

"My goal was to be second, maybe that was the trick to gain the victory," Nizzolo joked. "I'm super happy. My only goal in the sprint was to not get blocked in the final. I went quite far in the wind but I had good legs and it worked out."

"(Affini's attack) was a reference for me, I tried to catch him from as far as possible. He did a great effort so congratulations to him as well but I'm so happy."

Asked what a first Giro stage win meant to him, the 32-year-old said: "A lot, a lot. As I said, I don't think my value changed because of the Giro but it is obviously nice so I will enjoy it."

The sprint finish meant no change to the general classification as the overall contenders enjoyed a relatively easy day after two stressful stages and the looming presence of Monte Zoncolan on Saturday.

Ineos Grenadiers' Bernal retains a 45-second advantage over Aleksandr Vlasov, with Damiano Caruso one minute 12 seconds down ahead of Britain's Hugh Carthy and Simon Yates in fourth and fifth respectively.

"It was a bit calm and finally we had an easy day in the Giro," Bernal said. "I think we had some time to recover a little bit but tomorrow we will have a hard day, so from now we start to think about tomorrow."

One thousand fans are due to line Saturday's climb after tickets priced at €10 were snapped up inside an hour. Asked if he would target a stage win in the pink jersey, Bernal said: "That would be special but it's difficult to control all of the peloton and to control the break. I would be happy if I just keep the maglia rosa but I will do my best." PA

Stage 12: Bernal passes latest test to keep hold of pink

Thursday May 20 – Siena to Bagno di Romagna, 212km

Egan Bernal kept hold of the Giro d'Italia leader's jersey having survived the 212km stage from Siena to Bagno di Romagna unscathed after Ineos Grenadiers team-mate Gianni Moscon crashed during the finale.

Two-time winner Vincenzo Nibali (Trek-Segafredo), more than four minutes down in 13th place on general classification, used a late attack to claw back a few seconds and show he still has ambitions in the race.

Nibali's attack did draw a brief response from Bernal's team-mate Moscon, only for the Italian to crash on a corner, though he completed the stage without losing time.

"I think today was a really hard day for everyone," Bernal said. "We are happy it finished well. When Nibali attacked in the downhill we didn't want to take the risk to follow him so I think we did well."

The stage, meanwhile, was another day for the breakaway, with Andrea Vendrame (Ag2r-Citroën) beating Chris Hamilton (DSM) to the line as the last survivors of a 16-man breakaway.

"I'm super happy because I tried in 2019 but I was second and [Esteban] Chavez won that day, and I tried also last year but I was in a bad position," the Italian said.

"I have been training hard this year and I made a dream come true. I'm really happy. We've been working to try to get the blue jersey for [Geoffrey] Bouchard and then in the finish we made it so I could try and get the victory."

George Bennett (Jumb-Visma) was awarded third place after Gianluca Brambilla (Trek-Segafredo) was relegated for an irregular sprint, with the pair having been in something of squabble for many of the final kilometres. PA

Stage 11: Bernal extends lead after Evenepoel loses time

Wednesday May 19 – Perugia to Montalcino, 162km

Egan Bernal strengthened his grip on the pink jersey as the white gravel roads of Tuscany blew apart the Giro d'Italia on Wednesday.

Mauro Schmid won a dramatic stage 11 from a breakaway in Montalcino but all eyes were on the battle behind as the famed strade bianche broke the hopes of several general classification contenders.

An angry Remco Evenepoel conceded more than two minutes to go from second to seventh overall, Giulio Ciccono tumbled from fourth to eighth while Dan Martin and Davide Formolo fell out of contention.

Only 62 seconds separated the top 10 at the start of the day, but by the finish Bernal's advantage over second-placed Aleksandr Vlasov was 45 seconds, with Damiano Caruso 72 seconds down in third. The gap to 10th – held by Bernal's team-mate Dani Martinez – now stands at three minutes 15 seconds.

British duo Hugh Carthy and Simon Yates moved up to fourth and fifth respectively despite losing time amid the chaos, but Ineos Grenadiers' Bernal was the clear winner on the day. PA

Stage 10: Bernal retains lead going into first rest day

Monday May 17 – L’Aquila to Foligno, 139km

By John MacLeary

Egan Bernal retained the maglia rosa on Monday, the Colombian taking the leader's pink jersey into the first rest day of the Giro d'Italia after finishing the shortest stage of the three-week race safely in the bunch.

The Ineos Grenadiers rider will take a 14-second lead over Remco Evenepoel (Deceuninck-Quick Step) into Wednesday's stage when racing resumes in the Tuscan hills, while Aleksandr Vlasov (Astana-Premier Tech) will start another eight seconds down in third place.

Evenepoel gained one second on Bernal after the pair went head-to-head at the second intermediate sprint with time bonuses up for grabs, the Belgian edging out the maglia rosa on an enthralling day of racing.

Bernal said afterwards that he had not intended to challenge for the bonus seconds, but took the opportunity to race once he had seen Deceuninck-Quick Step make their move. "I just saw the opportunity to go behind Remco," he said. "I took only one second but it didn't take me any effort. We're here also to enjoy the race and this was a nice way to do so. It was actually a harder stage than we thought it would be this morning. Bora did a great job. Tomorrow I'll train during the rest day and I'll prepare for the very important stage coming up on Wednesday."

It was Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe), however, who was celebrating in Foligno after the three-time world champion won a bunch gallop ahead of Fernando Gaviria (UAE Team Emirates) to land the second Giro stage of his career, while the in-form Italian sprinter Davide Cimolai took third.

Sagan's win came after his team-mates had set a fierce tempo on an uncategorised climb that led in the category four Valico della Somma. Though unable to get rid of the entire field of sprinters, the pace on the climbs was too much for Dylan Groenewegen (Jumbo-Visma), Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Fenix) and Giacomo Nizzolo (Qhubeka-Assos) with all three getting dropped, unable to contest the sprint finish.

Sagan timed his move to perfection, benefiting from slipstream given to him by Juan Sebastián Molano (UAE Team Emirates) who attacked in the home straight, possibly thinking team-mate Fernando Gaviria was on his wheel. Sagan was able to, effectively, use Molano as his lead-out man, jumping the Colombian to take the stage, only the second Giro win of his career, finishing ahead of Gaviria and Davide Cimolai.

Stage nine: Bernal blasts into leader's pink jersey

Sunday May 16 – Castel di Sangro to Campo Felice, 158km

Former Tour de France champion Egan Bernal showed just why he is one of the favourites to win the Giro d'Italia as he stormed to victory Sunday on the ninth stage to also claim the leader's pink jersey.

Bernal, who rides for Ineos Grenadiers, attacked with about 500 metres remaining on the summit finish in the first top-categorised climb of this year's race. Bernal passed the two previous leaders to claim his first Giro stage win in the first year he has participated in the Italian race.

The 2019 Tour winner finished seven seconds ahead of Giulio Ciccone and Aleksandr Vlasov at the end of the 158-kilometre route from Castel di Sangro to the ski resort of Campo Felice. The stage featured three other categorised climbs as well as the final, tough ascent on gravel roads.

Bernal took over the race lead from Attila Valter. The 24-year-old Colombian has a 15-second lead over Remco Evenepoel and is 21 seconds ahead of Vlasov. AP

Stage eight: Valter holds lead for another day in mountains

Saturday May 15 – Foggia to Guardia Sanframondi, 170km

By John MacLeary

Attila Valter enjoyed the 'perfect day' on Saturday when the Hungarian who rides for Groupama-FDJ retained the leader's pink jersey at the Giro d'Italia having finished the hilly stage to Guardia Sanframondi safely.

It was another young rider, Victor Lafay of Cofidis, who won the stage after the 25-year-old made his move from a whittled down breakaway in the final two kilometres of the 170km stage from Foggia.

"It was a perfect day for me and for the team," said Valter after finishing alongside the main general classification contenders.

"Once the break went clear, we tried not to take any risks. It's amazing to see all my team-mates working for me and it's fantastic to be able to wear the maglia rosa for another day."

Stage seven: Ewan wins again as Valter retains pink

Friday May 14 – Notaresco to Termoli, 181km

By Tom Cary

Hugh Carthy remained in sixth place overall, 38 seconds off the lead, and fellow Briton Simon Yates 10th overall, a further 11 seconds back, after Friday’s seventh stage of the Giro d’Italia.

Caleb Ewan, the Australian sprinter, claimed his second stage win of the race as the general classification contenders recovered from what was a chaotic couple of days featuring numerous incidents and accidents.

General classification contender Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious) and stage four winner Joe Dombrowksi (UAE Team Emirates) were both forced to retire after a rider collided with a race marshal on stage five, triggering a multi-rider crash.

On Thursday’s sixth stage, meanwhile, a BikeExchange team car rear-ended Belgian rider Pieter Serry, knocking him off his bike. The driver involved, Gene Bates, was thrown off the race as a result.

With the weather set much fairer on Friday, and after all the crashes, the peloton seemed determined to enjoy a less eventful stage, Ewan (Lotto-Soudal) eventually following up his win on stage five with a well-timed surge at the finish in Termoli.

As the leading contenders began to wind up for the run-in, it was Fernando Gaviria (UAE Team Emirates) who made the first move on an uphill section, but his attack was destined to fail.

Ewan closed him down with about 150 metres remaining and won with something to spare to take his career Giro haul to five. Davide Cimolai (Israel Start-up Nation) was second and Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Fenix) third. Hungary’s Attila Valter (Groupama-FDJ) finished safely in the bunch to retain the pink leaders’ jersey.

”It was a question of being smart and a lot of teamwork,” Ewan said. “There were a few points in the last 10km where we needed to be in the front so we didn’t have to brake and we got a really good ride in.

“My legs were burning at the end. It was basically sprinting for the last 450 metres with a slight uphill, so it was a tough one. When Gavaria goes you know he has the strength and the speed to hold it. I had a bit of a run and really accelerated.”

Valter will keep the leader’s jersey for another day at least and will take an 11-second lead over Belgian youngster Remco Evenepoel (Deceuninck-Quick Step) into the eighth stage, which features one category-two climb and a steep finish at Guardia Sanframondi.

Stage six: Valter becomes first Hungarian to hold leader's pink jersey

Thursday May 13 – Grotte di Frasassi to Ascoli Piceno, 160km

Gino Mäder won the sixth stage of the Giro d'Italia on Thursday for his first victory in a grand tour, and Attila Valter took the leader's pink jersey.

Mäder, who rides for Bahrain Victorious, was part of a quartet leading the race up the summit finish and the 24-year-old attacked with three kilometres remaining to cross the line 12 seconds ahead of his fellow escapees.

Egan Bernal was second, just ahead of Dan Martin and Remco Evenepoel at the end of the sternest test yet of this year's Giro.

There were three classified climbs along the 160-kilometre route from Grotte di Frasassi to Ascoli Piceno and the stage was made even trickier by the weather conditions, which were wet and cold.

Valter took over the lead from Alessandro De Marchi. The Hungarian has an 11-second lead over Evenepoel and 16 seconds ahead of Bernal – two of the favorites for the overall win. AP

Stage five: De Marchi survives 'crazy circus' to keep pink

Wednesday May 12 – Modena to Cattolica, 177km

By John MacLeary

Alessandro De Marchi kept hold of his leader's pink jersey at the Giro d'Italia on Wednesday when the Italian finished safely in the bunch after Caleb Ewan won a bunch sprint finish to claim stage five in Cattolica.

Ewan's stage win – the fourth of the Lotto-Soudal rider's career – was only part of the story though on a day of high drama on the Adriatic coast.

Following a relatively incident-free day, Pavel Sivakov (Ineos Grenadiers) was the first to go down heavily after the Russian appeared to touch wheels with a team-mate before clipping the branch of a roadside tree. Although he completed the stage, over 13 minutes down, his team's sporting director Matteo Tosatto suggested he may have broken his collarbone and was unlikely to continue.

Landa's fate was sealed once the race had entered the final five kilometres of a circuitous and very technical run in to the line. The Basque, who had looked in great form during Tuesday's tough stage, crashed after a rider collided with a race marshal who was stood in the centre of the road to warn riders about dangerous road furniture.

Involved in the same crash, which left the marshal lying on the road, was Joe Dombrowski (UAE Team Emirates) and François Bidard (Ag2r-Citroën). Landa was unable to continue and was taken away by ambulance while Bahrain Victorious later confirmed the severity of his injuries in a team statement.

"In the final kilometres of the race, Mikel Landa was taken down in a crash involving three other riders after a collision at a traffic island," the team statement said. "Landa has been taken to Riccione Hospital, where he is receiving treatment for a broken collarbone and multiple ribs on his left side. Landa remained conscious throughout and is in good spirits to get back on the bike as soon as possible."

Tuesday's stage winner Dombrowski and the leader in the mountains classification completed the stage and is expected to continue on Thursday, while Bidard's team later confirmed the Frenchman had fractured his left clavicle and had abandoned the race.

Despite finishing safely to retain the maglia rosa, Alessandro De Marchi (Israel Start-up Nation) described the finale 'a crazy circus'.

"The road was really difficult and technical, even too dangerous in my opinion so in the last 70km there was really a lot of stress and I hope the guys that crashed are fine," the Italian said.

Stage four: De Marchi takes lead after his plan pay off

Tuesday May 11 – Piacenza to Sestola, 187km

By John MacLeary

Alessandro De Marchi took the first maglia rosa of his career after the Italian became the new race leader at his home race, the Giro d'Italia, following a rain-drenched fourth stage through the Apennines.

De Marchi, 34, later said he had been planning his assault on the fabled pink jersey which had been held by another Italian, Ineos Grenadiers rider Filippo Ganna since the opening stage, since the weekend.

“I started thinking about taking the maglia rosa two days ago but I didn't tell anybody,” the Israel Start-up Nation rider said. “Today it was about finding the right move. I knew it would be tricky at the start. A bit of luck helped and here we are. I'm lost for words. The maglia rosa is the childhood dream of every cyclist, especially for an Italian.”

The rider who is ordinarily associated with riding in the breakaway, did just that, though somehow managed to keep his powder dry until he lit the fuse at precisely the right time. Having been part of a large 25-man breakaway for much of the stage, Rein Taaramae (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux) appeared on course to take the jersey as he rode along with co-breakaway rider Chris Juul-Jensen (BikeExchange). That is, until De Marchi launched himself out of a chasing group, taking with him Joe Dombrowski (UAE Team Emirates), in the tough finale.

Despite missing out on the stage win that was taken by Dombrowski, De Marchi was able to hold on for second on the stage a result that propelled him into pink while the UAE Team Emirates rider moved up to second on general classification as well as taking the lead in the mountains competition. Louis Vervaeke (Alpecin-Fenix), another of the day's breakaway riders, climbed into third overall.

Stage three: Van der Hoorn defies odds to win from break

Monday May 10 – Biella to Canale, 190km

By John MacLeary

Filippo Ganna will wear the leader's pink jersey at the Giro d'Italia for a third successive day on Tuesday after the Ineos Grenadiers rider finished Monday's stage in the bunch behind winner Taco van der Hoorn.

Ganna, who took the overall led in the race after winning the opening time trial Saturday, enjoyed a relatively quiet day while Bora-Hansgrohe spent most of the 190-kilometre third stage from Biella to Canale setting a fierce pace on the front of the peloton. After an eight-man breakaway had formed from the flag, Peter Sagan's team appeared intent on reining them before the three-time world champion launched himself for the line.

However, Van der Hoorn (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux) had other ideas and after riding Simon Pellaud (Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec) off his wheel around 7km from the line remained the last man standing.

Against all the odds, however, the 27-year-old who is making his grand tour debut, held off the chasing pack to land the biggest win of his career.

Ganna rolled over the line safely in the bunch to keep hold of the maglia rosa, while Remco Evenepoel (Deceuninck- Quick Step) moved up to third on general classification. Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Fenix), who won Sunday's second stage, retained his points jersey, and Vincenzo Albanese (Eolo-Kometa) extended his lead in the mountains classification.

Stage two: Merlier sprints to victory as Ganna retains pink

Sunday May 9 – Stupinigi (Nichelino) to Novara, 173km

Tim Merlier handed Alpecin-Fenix victory on the first road stage of their Grand Tour debut as he took the honours on the second day of the Giro d'Italia.

The Belgian had the power to hold off Italian pair Giacomo Nizzolo and Elia Viviani at the end of the 179km stage from Stupinigi to Novara.

It was a record 10th second place in a Giro stage for Team Qhubeka-ASSOS' Nizzolo, who has never won a stage of his home Grand Tour despite twice winning the points classification.

The sprint finish meant there were only minimal changes in the early general classification standings as set in Saturday's opening time trial, with Filippo Ganna retaining the pink jersey for the Ineos Grenadiers.

The Italian stretched his advantage slightly to 13 seconds from Jumbo-Visma's Edoardo Affini as he picked up three bonus seconds in the intermediate sprint.

Deceuninck-QuickStep's Remco Evenepoel edged ahead of team-mate Joao Almeida to move up to fourth, 20 seconds down, with a group of pink jersey hopefuls including Egan Bernal, Simon Yates and Vincenzo Nibali still bunched together with deficits of a little over 40 seconds.

With only three riders joining the early breakaway, Sunday's stage was raced at a slow pace until it came back together with 25km to go and preparations began for a technical sprint, punctuated by a tight roundabout on the approach to the line.

Merlier launched his sprint early but nobody could find a way around the 28-year-old.

"I'm really happy, and really proud of it," he said of the win. "The roundabout was really important but I saw we were in a good position. My only thought was 'faster, faster, faster'. It was far to go from 250m but in the end it was enough."

Dylan Groenewegen, racing for the first time since serving a nine-month ban following last year's controversial crash at the Tour of Poland which left Fabio Jakobsen in a coma, finished fourth for Jumbo-Visma just behind Cofidis' Viviani.

"The feeling after a really long time is OK," the Dutchman said. "Taking fourth place in the first sprint after nine months, I need to be happy, but I'm a winner, I always want more.

"The legs are really perfect so I'm looking forward to the next sprints." The race continues with a 190km stage from Biella to Canale on Monday. PA

Stage one: Ganna wins time trial to take pink jersey

Saturday May 8 – Turin, 8.6km (time trial)

Filippo Ganna claimed the first Maglia Rosa leader's jersey of the 2021 Giro d'Italia on home soil, winning the opening time trial, an 8.6-km ride along the Po river on Saturday.

Time trial world champion Ganna, who also won the first stage of last year's Giro, clocked a best time of eight minutes 48 seconds to beat compatriot Edoardo Affini by 10 seconds and Norway's Tobias Foss by 12.

Belgian prospect Remco Evenepoel, who was making his comeback to competitive cycling more than eight months after serious injuries in a freak crash at the Giro di Lombardia, secured an encouraging top-10 finish, 18 seconds off the pace.

The 21-year-old, who won all four of the stage races he started last season, is making his grand tour debut, gunning for the general classification.

Among the other overall contenders, Russian Aleksandr Vlasov clocked 9:12, faring better than 2019 Tour de France champion Egan Bernal of Colombia (9:26), Briton Simon Yates (9:25) and double Giro champion and local favourite Vincenzo Nibali (9:28), who is back to racing after recovering from a wrist injury that required surgery.

Last year's runner-up Jai Hindley of Australia was a bit further down in the rankings with a time of 9:33.

Sunday's second stage is a 176-km ride from Stupinigi to Novara. Reuters