The Giro d’Italia Internazionale Femminile got underway this afternoon with a tricky 26.7 kilometre team time trial, from Fossano to Cuneo. It was an interesting parcours, with a short and shallow descent for the opening four kilometres before the road kicked up and slowly inclined for the remainder of the route, before a few technical turns in the finale.
The team started well, setting a consistent and steady tempo throughout the course, riding well as a cohesive unit. With the kilometres ticking by, the team eventually stopped the clock in a time of 35 minutes and four seconds, enough for a provisional third place at the line. With other teams still to complete their effort, the team ultimately ended the day in a solid ninth place. Tomorrow’s stage already sees the peloton head into the mountains and a summit finish at Prato Nevoso.
“I think we all did our best today, staff included.” explained road captain Coryn Rivera at the finish. “Technically we did everything really well and ticked off all the boxes but we just didn’t have the speed to have a top result on the day. We all gave our best and that’s what matters most. There are plenty of more stages to come where we can try our chances.”
Team DSM coach Albert Timmer: “I think technically we were good out there today, it’s just a case that there were faster teams than us over the course. We’ve still got nine exciting days of racing to go that bring us new options and opportunities to search and aim for good results here.”
Photo Credit: Cor Vos