Alejandro Valverde's seemingly habitual giornata no cost him overall victory at the Giro d'Italia on the road to Corvara last weekend, but the Movistar rider will stand on the final podium on Sunday after dislodging Steven Kruijswijk (LottoNL-Jumbo) from third place on the penultimate stage 20.
"I'm really very happy," Valverde said. "I think you could see that from how I punched the air when I crossed the line, it was as if I had won. We placed third overall and even almost second in the end."
Valverde had begun Saturday's short but exceedingly demanding leg to Sant'Anna di Vinadio just 43 seconds off a podium berth and facing a Kruijswijk whose powers were significantly diminished by the injuries he sustained in a crash on the descent of the Colle dell'Agnello the previous afternoon.
ADVERTISEMENT
When Vincenzo Nibali's inevitable – and ultimately Giro-winning – attack arrived on the Colle della Lombarda, Valverde and ephemeral maglia rosa Esteban Chaves (Orica-GreenEdge) were the only riders initially able to follow.
Though they were distanced when Nibali kicked again shortly afterwards, Valverde continued to put time into a struggling Kruijswijk all the way to the top, and again on the short final climb to Sant'Anna di Vinadio, where he was helped by teammate Giovanni Visconti, a member of the day's early break. Valverde placed 7th on the stage, just one place and 13 seconds behind Nibali, but – crucially – 1:13 clear of Kruijswijk.
"There were so many tifosi on the final climb that I couldn't hear the time gaps in my earpiece, but I knew I was putting time on those behind," Valverde said. "We were climbing strong and I could see Nibali, and see that I was even taking time back on him."
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest News http://ift.tt/1qSrZ60
No comments:
Post a Comment