today the last stop in the shadow of the Colosseum

In Bassano del Grappa, Tadej Pogacar plays the sixth symphony of a Giro d’Italia dominated from the start. The Slovenian had promised battle on Monte Grappa, despite the huge advantage he had in the standings over Dani Martinez and Geraint Thomas, but the objective was to once again give a show to the many Slovenian fans who flocked to Veneto, taking advantage of the proximity to the border . A victory – the fifth in the squad, equaled by Merckx – born 5 km from the second pass on the summit of Monte Grappa: after the UAE Team Emirates once again imposed its pace, Pogacar took off and, as usual, there was no ‘It was nothing for anyone to do. Giulio Pellizzari was in the breakaway, but had to give way to the dominator of this pink race. The final ascent was only made complicated by some undisciplined spectators: at least two people pushed the rider in the pink jersey, who did not hide his disappointment. On other occasions, however, smoke bombs were lit. It is not the first time that these episodes have occurred, but it should be noted that they are happening with a certain frequency: during the Northern Classics, for example, Mathieu van der Poel was the victim of two similar episodes at the Tour of Flanders and the Paris- Roubaix. On this last occasion, a spectator threw a hat towards her rear wheel, a reckless gesture. Pogacar, however, didn’t make a drama out of it: «You have to be prepared for this too, the important thing is not to lose your balance. A fan lit a smoke bomb a few centimeters from me and I felt the sparks on my skin. The important thing is that nothing happened.” The gesture of the pink jersey before the final descent was beautiful, as he passed a water bottle to a child on the side of the road immediately after taking it from a masseur. Behind Pogacar, Dani Martinez and Antonio Tiberi tried to distance Geraint Thomas and Ben O’Connor, but along the descent that led to Bassano del Grappa the chasing group became compact.

The other placings in the ranking have therefore not changed: today in Rome, on the podium with Tadej Pogacar, the Colombian Martinez and the Welshman Thomas will climb, among the top three for the second consecutive time at 38 years of age. Compared to 2023, however, the nationality of the first position does not change: today the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will award the Infinity Trophy to another Slovenian, Tadej Pogacar, who succeeds Primoz Roglic in the roll of honor and who wins the third grand tour after the two triumphs at the Tour de France in 2020 and 2021. Today will be a day of celebration in Rome, but from tomorrow we will think about the Tour de France, which will start on June 29th from Florence: Tadej Pogacar wants to become a legend, putting sign that double that no one has ever managed to achieve since Marco Pantani in 1998. The Capitoline fraction will start from the Quadrato della Concordia, will touch Ostia and will experience its final stages on the circuit to be repeated 8 times, which will touch via dei Fori Imperiali, the Lungotevere and the Circus Maximus, with the finish line located in via di San Gregorio. The fans await the sixth Italian victory: Jonathan Milan will in fact start as the favorite if the fraction ends in a sprint.

FINISHING ORDER (Alpago-Bassano del Grappa, 184 km): 1) T. Pogacar (Slo) in 4h58’23”, average 36.9 km/h; 2) V. Paret-Peintre (Fra) at 2’07”; 3) D. Martinez (Col) st; 4) A. Tiberi (Ita) st; 5) E. Rubio (Col) st. RANKING: 1) T. Pogacar (Slo) in 76h22’13”; 2) D. Martinez (Col) at 9’56”; 3) G. Thomas (Gbr) at 10’24”; 4) B. O’Connor (Aus) at 12’07”; 5) A. Tiberi (Ita) at 12’49”.

TODAY: Stage 21. Rome-Rome, 125 km.

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