A dark night of the soul. Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) rode directly to his hotel in Andalo after slipping to fourth overall at the Giro d’Italia on Tuesday, preferring to avoid speaking to reporters on the finish line, limiting himself to a brief statement issued by his team shortly after the stage. “I’m not myself, I have no explanation,” Nibali said.
Steven Kruijswijk (LottoNL-Jumbo) may hold the maglia rosa, but whatever happens from here to Turin, in Italian eyes, this remains the Giro of Vincenzo Nibali, who is making his first appearance in the race since winning it three years ago and claiming the Tour de France in the intervening period. Not since Marco Pantani in 1999 has a home rider lined up at the Giro shouldering an equivalent burden of pressure.
Some Italian reporters remained camped out in the hotel lobby long into Tuesday evening and after some initial reticence – “Why do you want to wound my pride even more? I’m already in pieces” – Nibali agreed to speak to Gazzetta dello Sport.
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“I don’t want to look for excuses. My current condition is what it is, but I don’t understand because it seems to me that I feel well. Even when [long-time soigneur Michele] Pallini gives me a massage, he tells me that my legs are right,” Nibali said.
Nibali has been subdued at this Giro from the first summit finish at Roccaraso, but remained very much in the hunt for the maglia rosa even after he was distanced by Kruijswijk and Esteban Chaves (Orica-GreenEdge) on the Passo Valparola on Saturday.
A disastrous showing in the Alpe di Siusi time trial the following day was a severe blow to Nibali’s chances and his morale. His attack on the Passo della Mendola on Tuesday ultimately proved an illusion, as he lost another 1:47 on the stage and dropped to fourth overall, now 4:43 behind Kruijswijk.
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