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Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Thursday, May 11, 2023

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2022 Tour de France | 2022 Giro d'Italia

Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work. - Aristotle

Stoic philosopher Epictetus' Golden Sayings is available in both audiobook & Kindle eBook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

Current racing:

• May 6 - 29: Giro d'Italia

Upcoming racing:

• May 16 - 21: 4 Jours du Dunkerque

Latest completed racing:

• May 7: Tro-Bro Léon
• May 6: GP du Morbihan
• May 1: Eschborn-Frankfurt
• April 25 - 30: Tour de Romandie
• April 28 - 30: Vuelta Asturias
• April 23: Liege-Bastogne-Liege
• April 17 - 21: Tour of the Alps
• April 19: La Fleche Wallone

We posted the report from GC leader Andreas Leknessund's Team DSM with the results.

Here's the report from Remco Evenepoel's Team Soudal Quick-Step:

It rained cats and dogs during the peloton’s trek to Salerno – home of the first medical school in the world – and a stray dog ended up playing an infamous role with 150 kilometers to go, when he sparked a crash that took down several Soudal Quick-Step riders, including the first maglia rosa of the race, Remco Evenepoel.

Remco Evenepoel after finishing stage five. Sirotti photo

After being checked over by the staff, the World Champion got up and back onto his bike, continuing the stage. Four teammates waited to pace him back to the peloton, which in the meantime had slowed down following this incident, and Remco eventually linked up with the field a couple of kilometers later. Unfortunately, after a couple of calm hours in the saddle following this incident, the last kilometers weren’t that straightforward, and the Belgian hit the deck again, just as a reduced peloton was gearing up for the bunch sprint.

On the bright side, this incident occurred inside the last three kilometers of stage five, which meant Remco got the same time as the winner Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and retained his place on the overall podium of the competition. He will now be assessed by the Soudal Quick-Step medical team, with an update on his condition after this rain-soaked crazy stage set to come later in the evening.

Update:
“After the first crash, things looked to be good for Remco, which at that moment was a big relief. The problem is that following his second crash he has a lot of pain on his right side and a hematoma with contraction of his muscles and some problems with his sacrum bone. Hopefully, with some good massage and osteopathic treatment followed by a good night’s rest things will be better. We will know more Thursday morning, but what’s sure is that stage six will be a difficult one for him”, said Soudal Quick-Step doctor Toon Cruyt.

Here’s the Giro report from Primoz Roglic’s Team Jumbo-Visma:

The fifth stage of the Giro d'Italia gave Team Jumbo-Visma a scare. The final was one for the fast men but was marred by several crashes on the slippery roads. Primoz Roglic was also involved in a crash, but owing to the outstanding work of his teammates, he quickly rejoined the lead group.

Primoz Roglic at the stage start. Sirotti photo

From the start in Atripalda, it rained nonstop. The peloton took it easy at first, and three riders opened up a lead of several minutes. These riders were caught well before the finish, leaving the sprinters to prepare for the fight for the stage victory. The wet roads in the finish town of Salerno caused several dangerous situations. The riders of sports director Marc Reef were vigilant but were shocked to see race leader Roglic involved in a crash.

"Normally, this finish is not a problem. But the rain made it hectic and slippery. Several riders went off in a right-hand corner with about seven kilometres to go. Primoz was one of them", Reef said. "Koen immediately handed his bike to Primoz. The rest of the guys waited and brought him back to the front. Edoardo Affini did a strong final turn there."

The Slovenian was impressed with his teammates' efforts. "They did a great job in the last few kilometres. The damage could have been much worse. When I got back up front, there was another crash, but this time I was lucky. I am glad that we were able to cross the line safely after that."

Despite the mayhem, Reef looks back on day five with satisfaction. "A crash is, of course, unfortunate, but it happened at a low speed. It was good to see how the men handled it. We previously discussed what to do in such a situation. We got through it well, and at first glance, it doesn't look too bad with Primoz."

Here’s the Giro stage five report from Mads Pedersen’s Team Trek-Segafredo:

Today’s stage of the Giro, number five from Atripalda to Salerno, was maybe the most complicated and hectic day of the race so far and, for Trek-Segafredo, it saw the Team secure its third consecutive podium finish. It was Mads Pedersen who took this one, behind Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Milan (Bahrain-Victorious), after a very fast sprint.

Kaden Groves takes the stage. Sirotti photo

The challenge between the fastest wheels in the bunch came after 171 kilometers of wet and wild racing in the rain and the dangers that come along with it. This was one of the reasons why, until 30 kilometers to go, the peloton was happy to not take too many risks and to control the day’s three-rider breakaway.

However, fate did not spare the peloton after the attackers had been caught. Three crashes in less than ten kilometers, which fortunately saw Trek-Segafredo come out unscathed, brought lots of tension and so, it was a natural conclusion to see a small selection made at the front of the field.

In the end, this reduced group went on to fight for the win with Mads once again not far off completing his grand slam of Grand Tour stage wins.

In Mads’ words…
"It was a super hectic sprint, I fought for the win but yeah, I was not fast enough today.

"We knew since the start that these kind of sprints, when we have to head straight on to the line at full speed till the last meter, and on wet roads, are the worst. They always bring so much stress, with lots of moves and riders everywhere. These situations are definitely hard to handle, they carry lots of hidden dangers. We have to be super fast and, at the same time, super focused on everything. Today we had a lot of crashes and I feel pretty lucky I didn’t go down. Such hectic situations are never nice and unfortunately it’s easy to make mistakes. I really hope everyone is ok, Remco first of all.

"Anyway, let’s look forward. It’s the second podium on two stages, not bad, but of course we’re here to look for more than a good placement. Tomorrow could be another good chance on paper, and others will come. Let’s keep the focus on our goal and let’s keep fighting for it."

And here's the report from Tao Geoghegan Hart's Team INEOS Grenadiers:

Geraint Thomas and Tao Geoghegan Hart finished safely on the back of the lead group during a crash-marred finale to stage five at the Giro d'Italia.

Wet roads and a fast run-in saw a number of crashes on the day, with the team's GC duo able to stay upright during a test where a number of contenders went down.

The peloton races for the line. Sirotti photo

The team hit the front to ensure a strong position into the race's final corner, which came 7km out from the line in Salerno. The first of three crashes saw the peloton split, with the G and Tao safely in the front group.

Another pile-up on the straight run-in saw Pavel Sivakov and Thymen Arensman caught up, but quickly back on their bikes and without time-loss, courtesy of the 3km to go rule.

The sprint finish ensured that much of the top-10 remained unchanged, with Thomas and Geoghegan Hart retaining sixth and ninth places overall.

Both Remco Evenepoel (Soudal - Quick-Step) and Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) were caught up in crashes on the day, while the stage was won by Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck).

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