A fall on the white gravel roads of the Tuscany cost Topfavorit Primoz Roglic important time in the fight for overall victory at Giro d’Italia. The ninth stage won Wout van Aert.
The Slovenian captain from the German Red Bull team reached the finish line at Piazza del Campo in Siena after 181 kilometers behind the day winner Woout van Aert after 181 kilometers. In the overall ranking, Roglic slipped to tenth place and is now 2:25 minutes behind Isaac del Toro, who was the first Mexican to conquer the pink jersey.
Roglic plunged 51 kilometers from the finish line together with four other drivers on one of the gravel sectors, who also belong to the program at the Strade Bianche in the one-day race. After the Giro winner from 2023 also had a tire damage shortly afterwards, he finally lost the connection.
“It was hard, the pace was very high. We have to see what we are doing now. We will see what it means in the end. We have lost these minutes. It is still a long way to relax”said Roglic.
50. Career victory for Van Aert
The former cross world champion van Aert, who prevailed up to Siena in a gripping duel with del Toro on the final climb. For the Belgian, who had already won the Strade Bianche in Siena five years ago, it was the first victory this season and 50th of his career after difficult weeks.
In the overall ranking, del Toro is now 1:13 minutes ahead of his UAE teammate Juan Ayuso from Spain. The Italian Antonio Tiberi (1:30) is third.
After the second day of rest on Monday, the tour of Italy continues a day later with the second individual time trial over 28.6 kilometers from Lucca to Pisa. This offers Roglic the chance to make time for his greatest rivals. The Vuelta winner had already opened second when driving up in Albania.