- Belgian Tim Merlier wins the final stage of the Giro d’Italia in a mass sprint.
- Overall winner Tadej Pogacar is celebrated as a big winner upon arrival in Rome.
- The Slovenian wins convincingly ahead of Daniel Martinez (COL) and Geraint Thomas (GBR).
Tim Merlier (Soudal-Quickstep) took the day’s victory at the end of the Giro d’Italia. The Belgian, who had already won the 3rd and 18th stages, sprinted to victory on the cobblestones in front of the Colosseum in Rome. With his third stage win, the 31-year-old drew level with Jonathan Milan, the winner of the points classification. The Italian also has three stage wins to his name.
In the final in Rome, Milan had to settle for second place. The sprint specialist from the Lidl-Trek team was slowed down by a defect in the final kilometers. He managed to catch up with the field, but he was a little lacking in strength at the finish.
Pogacar even more dominant than expected
Tadej Pogacar had a relatively quiet Sunday. The Slovenian was able to enjoy the 126 km final stage to Rome together with his colleagues from the UAE Team Emirates, as the leader is traditionally not attacked on the last day.
Even before the start of the three-week tour, Pogacar was considered the absolute favorite for the overall victory. But what he delivered in Italy was even more dominant than expected. The 25-year-old celebrated 6 stage wins on the way to his first Giro victory, as many as Eddy Merckx in 1973. He continued to extend his lead in the overall ranking. He had already taken over the pink jersey on the second day of the tour.
In the end, his lead over Colombian Daniel Martinez from the Bora-Hansgrohe team was 9:56 minutes. It is the largest gap since 1965. Third-placed Geraint Thomas (Ineos) lost 10:24 minutes to the outstanding Pogacar, who also won the mountain classification.
Foundation stone for the double
With his victory at the Giro, Pogacar laid the foundation for a rare double. The Slovenian is also aiming for overall victory at the Tour de France this summer. The last time Marco Pantani managed this was in 1998. Pogacar will return to Italy on this mission at the end of June. This year’s Tour de France begins on June 29 in Florence.
Top 10 ranking for Tudor
For Team Tudor, which was able to take part thanks to a wildcard, the Giro premiere ended well. Alberto Dainese (ITA) finished the 21st stage in Rome in 7th place. In the overall ranking, Michael Storer finished 10th, a good 21 minutes behind Pogacar. The Australian had only moved into the top 10 on Saturday.