Through the streets of Turin, in his native Piedmont, Filippo Ganna traces the curves as if it were a Formula 1, clad in his
world champion time trial
diver
.
His strong and robust figure advances perfectly attached to his bicycle, as if they were one, among the crowd that, crowded on the sidewalks, more than common sense seems to recommend these days, jelly with passion.
[Narration and classifications of the Giro]
There is no possible rival for the Giant of Verbania, who kicks his pedals at a rate of
58.7 km / h for 8.6 kilometers
, an outrage that slows his time at 8:47, a time unattainable for the rest. His compatriot Edoardo Affini, a salaryman of an outstanding Jumbo throughout the day, who had been waiting for a long time in the provisional leader's chair, awaiting the inevitable outcome, takes off his cap and bows to him in the distance. 10 seconds has scratched him. Today, there is no possible rival for Ganna when it is put between his eyebrows to win a time trial. And in the one this Saturday, with the 'pink jersey' as an additional prize, his wishes for victory were maximum. If there was a single certainty in this Giro, it was that the Ineos wheeler would be its first leader.
From now on, what is drawn are unknowns, all minimal compared to the one that
Remco Evenepoel
harbors in his legs
. 8.6 kilometers do not give too many conclusions, but the 21-year-old Belgian appears and makes it clear that it will be what it has to be, but that he has not come to this Tour Giro. He had not competed for 266 days after his chilling accident at the Giro de Lombardia and at the first change he finished seventh in a time trial in which specialists abound. Worse than Foss, Cavagna or Affini, but better than Campenaerts, Brändle or Castroviejo, the best Spaniard at the finish line.
And worse also than
Joao Almeida
, the Portuguese who revolutionized the last Giro and with whom he shares stripes at the Deceuninck.
This time he gives up only 17 seconds with Ganna and is already presenting his candidacy to inherit his 'pink jersey' when the mountain begins to appear, already on Tuesday and also on Thursday.
Of the men in the general standings (and apart from Evenepoel himself, be careful also with Foss) he is clearly the best at the dawn of the Giro, a condition that only Aleksandr Vlasov, with a loss of 24 seconds, his great time, is capable to discuss.
Most of the aspirants to the great throne share a platoon:
Hugh Carthy, Pello Bilbao and Simon Yates
give 38 seconds;
Egan Bernal, 39;
George Bennett, 41;
Marc Soler, 42;
Jay Hindley, 46. Behind them, with a loss of 49 seconds, appears the name of Mikel Landa, who once again starts a Giro against the current.
Nothing to do with the 2019 edition, in which the allergy drowned him in the opening time of Bologna, but again he sees the need to go back from day one.
Only Emmanuel Buchmann (55 seconds) and Dan Martin (57) ended the day with a worse taste in their mouths.
The good thing about a Grand Tour is that it always offers 20 stages to turn any situation around.
In reality, everything is still in a handkerchief, with all the cards to be discovered.
Except for Ganna, of course, in these games she is ace and king at the same time.
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