Orica-GreenEdge placed two riders in the top-20 of the Giro d'Italia's first stage in Appeldoorn but it was the performance of Esteban Chaves that was most pleasing for the Australian team. Michael Hepburn, last man to start the 10km time trial, finished in 19th just one second slower than Damien Howson in 17th place while Chaves came home in 33rd place, 30 seconds down on winner Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Alpecin)
"It was definitely a good day for us," said sports director Matt White. "Esteban (Chaves) produced an excellent ride over a course that doesn't naturally suit his strengths. Today was a flat day for the big powerful riders not the smaller climbers which makes Esteban's result very impressive."
Orica-GreenEdge are aiming to place Chaves on the podium at the Giro after the Colombian's breakout at last year's Vuelta a Espana when he won two stages and enjoyed stints in the leader's jersey. Having posted a better time than fellow GC aspirants such as Mikel Landa (Team Sky), Rigoberto Uran (Cannondale), Rafal Majka (Tinkoff) and 2012 Giro winner Ryder Hesjedal (Trek-Segafredo), Chaves already finds himself on the front foot and in an enviable position as White explained.
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"To be in front of the vast majority of general classification competitors and just behind the big favourites is a really good start to the race for us," said White.
"Seconds do matter in a grand tour, they can be all important. Today's performance gives Esteban and the team a lot of confidence going into the rest of the race, in particular the individual time trial in Chianti on stage ten."
- Giro d'Italia: How the GC contenders fared on stage 1
- Giro d'Italia stage 1: Results, report and gallery
- Giro d'Italia stage 1: Video Highlights
- Giro d'Italia stage 1: Finish line quotes
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