Aprica (dpa) – professional cyclist Lennard Kämna missed his second stage win at the 105th Giro d’Italia, Emanuel Buchmann must give up all hopes of a podium finish.
On the 202-kilometer mountain stage from Salò to Aprica, Kämna finished seventh after a strong performance. Jan Hirt from the Czech Republic secured the day’s victory. Kämna had previously won the fourth stage on Mount Etna and also led the race for a long time on Tuesday.
In the overall standings, Richard Carapaz of Ecuador retained the leader’s pink jersey but is just three seconds ahead of Kämna’s Australian team-mate and third of the day, Jai Hindley. Buchmann, who started the stage seventh overall, lost almost three minutes to Carapaz and Co. and is now eighth. However, the 29-year-old is only 4:01 minutes from the podium.
Kämna secures important bonus seconds
Kämna made it into the well-manned escape group of the day on what Buchmann classified as the “most brutal stage”. Halfway through the stage on the dreaded Mortirolo, the North German was one of the strongest drivers. About 21 kilometers before the finish, Kämna pulled away from three escape companions, and was then overtaken by Hirt a few kilometers before the mountain classification on the last mountain, the Santa Cristina, which is particularly steep in the second part.
At the Santa Cristina, Buchmann had lost touch with the group of favorites. In the steepest section, the Spaniard Mikel Landa attacked, only Carapaz and Buchmann’s teammate Hindley followed the Spanish climbing specialist. Hindley made the strongest impression in the small group, which finally caught up with Kämna, and ultimately secured important bonus seconds in the sprint.