Pinerolo (Italy) (AFP)
Italy's Cesare Benedetti (Bora) won the Giro's 12th stage on Thursday in Pinerolo, where Slovenian Jan Polanc (UAE Emirates) grabbed the pink jersey.
Benedetti settled a small group of survivors of a breakaway in the first fifteen minutes.
Polanc, a member of this group, took over from his Italian team-mate Valerio Conti at the top of the overall standings.
Benedetti, a professional since 2010, opened his list at the age of 31. He signed the third success for his team since the start, after the two victorious sprints of the German Pascal Ackermann.
The first skirmishes between the favorites occurred in the main climb of the day, Montoso, the first ranked in the first category of this Giro.
Colombian Miguel Angel Lopez (3rd in the Giro 2018) and Spaniard Mikel Landa went on the attack in the climb, 37 kilometers from the finish. They took about 30 seconds to their direct rivals in the standings.
The Italian Vincenzo Nibali appeared very comfortable, as was the Polish Rafal Majka. On the other hand, Slovenian Primoz Roglic found himself quickly lonely.
Polanc, a 27-year-old Slovenian who has won two Giro stages, each time in the mountains, has for the first time endorsed the pink jersey.
Friday, the Giro arrives in high mountains, near the French border. The 13th stage, 196 kilometers long, ends with the ascent to Lago Serru, above Ceresole Reale (north-west), a rise of 20.3 kilometers to 2247 meters.
? 2019 AFP