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.”
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
RSS