Elisa Balsamo strengthened her grip on the Giro d’Italia Women 2026 with victory on stage 2 in Caorle, winning again in the maglia rosa after her promoted stage 1 success in Ravenna. The Lidl-Trek rider came through another bunch sprint to beat Lara Gillespie and Chiara Consonni, extending her overall lead and tightening her control of the early race.
The 156km stage from Roncade to Caorle always looked likely to finish in a sprint, despite the short, steep Muro di Ca’ del Poggio midway through the route. That climb opened the mountains classification and briefly gave the stage a sharper edge, but the long, flat run towards the coast allowed the peloton to reorganise before the final sprint.
Balsamo now leads Gillespie by eight seconds on GC, with Consonni third at 12 seconds. Charlotte Kool is fourth at 20 seconds, with Linda Zanetti, Georgia Baker, Alessia Zambelli, Arlenis Sierra, Gladys Verhulst-Wild and Cristina Tonetti completing the top 10. The main GC favourites again reached the finish safely, with the first real overall tests still to come later in the week.
For the wider shape of the race, ProCyclingUK’s Giro d’Italia Women 2026 full route guide explains how the route moves from the opening sprint stages towards Buja, the Nevegal uphill time trial and the Dolomite stage to Santo Stefano di Cadore.
Giro d’Italia Women 2026 general classification after stage 2
Balsamo remains in pink after taking maximum bonus seconds for the second day in a row. Her official lead is now eight seconds over Gillespie, who has twice finished second after Wiebes’ stage 1 disqualification reshaped the opening standings. Consonni is third at 12 seconds, with the rest of the front group 20 seconds down.
The early GC is still mainly shaped by sprint bonuses rather than climbing strength, but that does not make it irrelevant. Balsamo has built a useful cushion before the race becomes harder, while the main overall contenders have avoided the kind of early damage that can make a stage race awkward before the decisive climbs arrive.
- 1st: Elisa Balsamo, Lidl-Trek, 7:15:51
- 2nd: Lara Gillespie, UAE Team ADQ, +0:08
- 3rd: Chiara Consonni, Canyon SRAM, +0:12
- 4th: Charlotte Kool, Fenix-Premier Tech, +0:20
- 5th: Linda Zanetti, Uno-X Mobility, +0:20
- 6th: Georgia Baker, Liv AlUla Jayco, +0:20
- 7th: Alessia Zambelli, Top Girls Fassa Bortolo, +0:20
- 8th: Arlenis Sierra, Movistar Team, +0:20
- 9th: Gladys Verhulst-Wild, AG Insurance-Soudal Team, +0:20
- 10th: Cristina Tonetti, Laboral Kutxa-Fundación Euskadi, +0:20
Stage 3 to Buja should begin to change the texture of the race. The sprinters have made the most of the opening weekend, but the Giro now starts to move towards terrain where the GC riders will need to be more visible.
Photo Credit: RCSMaglia rosa: Elisa Balsamo doubles up in pink
Balsamo’s weekend could hardly have turned out better once the stage 1 result was revised. She inherited the first maglia rosa after Wiebes’ disqualification, then backed it up on the road by winning stage 2 outright in Caorle.
This was not only a defence of the jersey. It was a confirmation that Balsamo has been the strongest legal finisher across the opening two days. The sprint in Caorle gave her another stage win, another 10-second bonus and a firmer hold on pink before the Giro starts to become more selective.
Lidl-Trek also gain more than the jersey. Balsamo’s results give the team immediate control of the race narrative, while Niamh Fisher-Black and Isabella Holmgren remain safely placed for the harder stages. The team now has both early sprint success and longer-term GC options still intact.
Stage 2 winner: Balsamo beats Gillespie and Consonni in Caorle
Balsamo won stage 2 in a bunch sprint after the peloton controlled the long run-in to Caorle. Gillespie finished second again, continuing UAE Team ADQ’s strong opening weekend, while Consonni took third for Canyon SRAM.
Kool improved to fourth after a quieter opening day by her standards, with Barbara Guarischi fifth for Team SD Worx-Protime. Sierra, Maggie Coles-Lyster, Zambelli, Nienke Veenhoven and Zanetti completed the top 10 on the stage.
The result also underlined how open the sprint hierarchy has become after Wiebes’ removal from the race. Balsamo has taken full advantage, Gillespie has been consistently close, Consonni remains a threat and Kool should still have opportunities if the race comes back together again later in the week.
Photo Credit: RCSPoints classification: Balsamo extends her maglia rossa lead
Balsamo also leads the points classification after stage 2, moving to 70 points after taking full points at the finish in Caorle. Gillespie is second on 50 points, with Consonni third on 36.
The intermediate sprint at Cimadolmo was taken by Sara Luccon ahead of Elisa De Vallier and Eleonora La Bella, giving the breakaway riders useful points before the sprinters dominated the finish. Even so, the overall points picture is already heavily shaped by the two stage finishes.
- 1st: Elisa Balsamo, Lidl-Trek, 70 points
- 2nd: Lara Gillespie, UAE Team ADQ, 50 points
- 3rd: Chiara Consonni, Canyon SRAM, 36 points
- 4th: Charlotte Kool, Fenix-Premier Tech, 24 points
- 5th: Georgia Baker, Liv AlUla Jayco, 14 points
- 6th: Sofia Arici, Vini Fantini-BePink, 12 points
- 7th: Sara Luccon, Top Girls Fassa Bortolo, 12 points
- 8th: Barbara Guarischi, Team SD Worx-Protime, 10 points
- 9th: Linda Zanetti, Uno-X Mobility, 8 points
- 10th: Elisa De Vallier, Top Girls Fassa Bortolo, 8 points
The maglia rossa is still far from settled, but Balsamo already has a meaningful lead. The question now is how many more sprint chances the race will offer before the profile turns against the fastest finishers.
Photo Credit: RCSMountains classification: Eleonora La Bella takes the maglia azzurra
The mountains classification finally opened on stage 2, with the Muro di Ca’ del Poggio giving the attackers a clear mid-stage target. Eleonora La Bella took maximum points over the fourth-category climb and now leads the maglia azzurra standings.
Elisa De Vallier sits second after taking two points, with Sara Luccon third on one point. It is still an early and very small classification, but the jersey now has a leader before the Giro reaches more selective terrain.
- 1st: Eleonora La Bella, Aromitalia Vaiano, 3 points
- 2nd: Elisa De Vallier, Top Girls Fassa Bortolo, 2 points
- 3rd: Sara Luccon, Top Girls Fassa Bortolo, 1 point
The blue jersey battle should change significantly once the race reaches the hillier and mountainous stages. For now, La Bella has taken the first available opportunity and given Aromitalia Vaiano early classification visibility.
Photo Credit: RCSYoung rider classification: Alessia Zambelli moves into white
Alessia Zambelli now leads the young rider classification after finishing inside the top 10 on stage 2. The Top Girls Fassa Bortolo rider is level on time with several rivals but moves ahead on placings, taking the maglia bianca from Célia Gery.
The top of the classification remains tightly packed, with Alexandra Volstad second, Gery third, Irma Siri fourth and Viktória Chladoňová fifth. Isabella Holmgren, Fleur Moors, Justyna Czapla, Rosita Reijnhout and Lore De Schepper complete the top 10, all on the same time as Zambelli.
- 1st: Alessia Zambelli, Top Girls Fassa Bortolo, 7:16:11
- 2nd: Alexandra Volstad, EF Education-Oatly, same time
- 3rd: Célia Gery, FDJ United-Suez, same time
- 4th: Irma Siri, Top Girls Fassa Bortolo, same time
- 5th: Viktória Chladoňová, Team Visma | Lease a Bike, same time
- 6th: Isabella Holmgren, Lidl-Trek, same time
- 7th: Fleur Moors, Lidl-Trek, same time
- 8th: Justyna Czapla, Canyon SRAM, same time
- 9th: Rosita Reijnhout, Team Visma | Lease a Bike, same time
- 10th: Lore De Schepper, AG Insurance-Soudal Team, same time
The white jersey has not yet been shaped by climbing or time trialling. That should change once the Giro reaches Nevegal and the harder GC stages, where riders such as Holmgren and Chladoňová may become more relevant in a different way.
Team classification: UAE Team ADQ stay in front
UAE Team ADQ remain at the top of the team classification after stage 2, with most of the leading teams still level on time. Gillespie’s second place and Elisa Longo Borghini’s safe finish help keep the team in the lead on placings.
Human Powered Health sit second, Lidl-Trek third, Team Visma | Lease a Bike fourth and FDJ United-Suez fifth. At this early stage, the classification is still mainly shaped by sprint-stage placings rather than significant time gaps.
- 1st: UAE Team ADQ, 21:48:33
- 2nd: Human Powered Health, same time
- 3rd: Lidl-Trek, same time
- 4th: Team Visma | Lease a Bike, same time
- 5th: FDJ United-Suez, same time
- 6th: Liv AlUla Jayco, same time
- 7th: Uno-X Mobility, same time
- 8th: Canyon SRAM, same time
- 9th: Top Girls Fassa Bortolo, same time
- 10th: Team SD Worx-Protime, same time
The team classification should become more meaningful once the route begins to split the race. For now, UAE Team ADQ will be satisfied with a second consecutive day at the top, especially with Longo Borghini still safely placed for the GC battle ahead.
GC favourites stay out of trouble again
The main overall contenders survived another sprint stage without damage. Longo Borghini, Anna van der Breggen, Demi Vollering, Niamh Fisher-Black, Antonia Niedermaier, Monica Trinca Colonel, Isabella Holmgren, Urška Žigart and Marlen Reusser all remain 20 seconds behind Balsamo, with no meaningful GC split created by the opening weekend.
That is the key takeaway for the race favourites. The first two stages were not designed to decide the Giro, but they could easily have caused trouble through crashes, late gaps or positioning errors. The major names have reached stage 3 still grouped together, with the bonus-second gaps to Balsamo the only real difference near the front.
The race now begins to tilt towards more selective terrain. Stage 3 to Buja should be harder to control than the opening two sprint days, before the stage 4 uphill time trial to Nevegal creates the first direct GC test.
What stage 2 changed
Stage 2 confirmed that Balsamo is in full control of the opening phase of this Giro. She has two official stage wins, the maglia rosa and the maglia rossa, and she has already built a small but useful buffer over the rest of the race.
The day also opened two more classifications. La Bella became the first mountains leader after Ca’ del Poggio, while Zambelli moved into the white jersey after another strong placing from Top Girls Fassa Bortolo. UAE Team ADQ kept the team classification lead, helped by Gillespie’s consistency and Longo Borghini’s safe passage through another sprint stage.
The Giro now moves beyond the most straightforward sprint section. Balsamo has made the perfect start, but the race is about to become much more complicated for both the sprinters and the GC favourites.
Giro d’Italia Women 2026 stage 2 result
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