In a Tour d’Italie that has already written indelible pages of history, new ones were written yesterday. In addition to the historic departure from Florence, here are two more: the first victory of a black African and the first yellow jersey worn by an Ecuadorian. The protagonists of these two feats are not two unknowns, but two absolute protagonists of the pedal: the 24-year-old Eritrean Biniam Girmay and the 31-year-old Ecuadorian Richard Carapaz. One already a protagonist on the roads of the Giro, the other even Olympic gold in Tokyo.
Girmay should have helped his teammate Thijssen, who is more suited to this type of flat and fast arrival, but since the Belgian is losing his wheels, the Eritrean goes it alone and with a crazy comeback he easily passes everyone. Already the first black African to win a classic (the Gand-Wevelgem 2022) and to win the Giro (in Jesi, when he went home immediately after shooting himself in the eye with a champagne cork on the stage), at 24 he also becomes the first to win the Tour. “It’s a great day for me and for Africa. It wasn’t up to me, but in the last kilometer I couldn’t see Thijssen anymore and I tried: I managed to beat the fastest in the world”, Girmay sobs emotionally.
On the day when the magnificent four (Pogacar, Evenepoel, Vingegaard and Carapaz) are all lined up with the same time and are trying to free themselves from the weight of the leader’s jersey, the only one who shows interest in wearing it is the Ecuadorian winner of the Giro, who by also wearing the “yellow” completes his collection in the three major tours and sends a message to his federation that
At the Games he preferred Narvaez, even though Richard was the reigning Olympic champion.
Today the Tour will say goodbye to Italy. The start is from Pinerolo, destination Valloire with the climb of the Galibier. Today there is little to do the calculations.
