The Slovak cyclist Peter Sagan gave the German team Bora-hansgrohe its first stage win at this year's Giro d'Italia.
The three-time road bike world champion and teammate of the German hopeful Emanuel Buchmann decided on Monday on the tenth stage after 139 kilometers from L'Aquila to Foligno a mass sprint of the main field ahead of the Colombian Fernando Gaviria and the Italian Davide Cimolai.
Former Tour winner Egan Bernal successfully defended the overall leader's pink jersey that he had captured the day before. Buchmann rolled over the finish line in 26th. In the overall standings, the tour specialist from Ravensburg remains in 15th place, being 1:47 minutes behind Bernal.
“It was a really good day for us. I have to say a big thank you to everyone in my team, ”said day winner Sagan after the race. In the only mountain classification of the day, the Bora team pushed the pace a good 40 kilometers before the finish, leaving sprint stars Tim Merlier (Belgium), Dylan Groenewegen (Netherlands) and Giacomo Nizzolo (Italy) behind. For the 31-year-old Sagan, who won the sprint from the front with an irresistible finish, it is the second day's success in his Giro career after 2020. The former world champion thus also took the lead in the points classification and took care of the overall seventh Bora day win in the current WorldTour season.
On Tuesday the field is allowed to breathe after ten exhausting days: The first of two rest days as part of the 104th Tour of Italy is coming up. On Wednesday the route covers 163 kilometers through Tuscany from Perugia to Montalcino. There are also 35 kilometers to be mastered over the gravel roads of the difficult one-day race Strade Bianche.