Ecuador’s Richard Carapaz on Friday tightened his grip on the leader’s pink jersey as Colombia’s Esteban Chaves claimed victory in the 19th stage of the Giro d’Italia.
Chaves, riding for Mitchelton-Scott, edged clear of a breakaway that battled up a grueling final 13.6km climb with a 5.6 percent gradient.
The 29-year-old, who finished second in the Giro and third in the Vuelta in 2016, found himself riding solo with just less than 3km to race to the line.
Italy’s Andrea Vendrame twice overcame chain problems to finish second, with Portugal’s Amaro Antunes rounding out the podium.
“This is pure happiness,” Chaves said. “It takes a heavy weight off my back.”
“It’s a relief to be a winner again. It shows I can do it,” he said. “Because the last climb wasn’t very steep, I had to attack many many times. A big thank you to everyone who supported me when I had a hard time.”
Chaves’ compatriot Miguel Angel Lopez, chasing second spot in the general classification, was the big winner of the day as he finished more than 40 seconds ahead of his main rivals. With just two days of racing to go, the Colombian was in sixth at 5 minutes, 33 seconds.
“I felt good all day, so I attacked,” Lopez said. “I am happy with the result, but, certainly, the most important thing will be decided tomorrow.”
Leader Carapaz resisted a late surge by third-placed Primoz Roglic, holding on to cross the mountaintop finish line in a peloton alongside the Slovenian, Italian Vincenzo Nibali and Spain’s Mikel Landa, the latter two staying in second and fourth positions overall respectively.
“I was expecting Miguel Angel Lopez to attack, but we dealt with it the best possible way with Mikel Landa,” Carapaz said. “It’s another good day for us and we’re looking forward to tomorrow. We’re ready to defend the maglia rosa in a harder stage than today.”
Yesterday’s penultimate stage was to see the riders tackle a punishing 193km ride from Feltre to Croce d’Aune Monte Avena in the Dolomites, which features five long climbs, including 11km at 5.5 percent up Croce d’Aune and 6.9km at 7.3 percent up Monte Avena.
Carapaz said that he was sure he could count on the support Landa, who started the race as Movistar Team leader.
“From now on, he is at my service 100 percent. He told me himself,” Carapaz said.
The Giro today ends with a 15.6km time trial in Verona.
“I will worry about Verona when I am in Verona,” Carapaz said. “Tomorrow is a big stage, very long with a lot of climbs.”
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