This Giro has offered a first week whose level may perhaps be maintained
After what we saw in the first week of the Giro d’Italia, the question we ask ourselves so much returns: Is cycling today more entertaining than before?
Well, I don’t know, because basically it happens at times, although the certainty that we are seeing an absolutely historic generation of cyclists makes us opt for yes.
The issue is there and the first week of the Giro d’Italia makes it clear to us.
We have a very close general classification, with a leader who is more than two minutes behind the second, with people in the top 10 who are more than six minutes behind the first, who has won three of the eight stages held, and yet we have seen a race , brilliant, vibrant and beautiful race, dismantling the idea that an even grand lap is more spectacular.
Because it is not, in any case it is exciting, because everyone is close, but at the same time it encourages the fear of losing and making mistakes, a fatal fact for the show.
Having said all this, the first week of the Giro d’Italia, which underpins what may be Pogacar’s first victory in the Italian major, has been excellent.
Every day something to enjoy and something to see, demonstrating another reality in the grand tours, apart from the general classification many other things happen, stories happen that are worth enjoying.
With the common thread of Pogacar’s dominance, each day has had something to offer and has justified the minutes we dedicated to the race.
From Pogacar’s almost successful start on Monday, to the excellent finish that the Italian team’s chasers gave us on Tuesday, the day Jonathan Milan won.
Then came the exceptional ride of Michael Valgren, Andrea Pioetrobon and Benjamin Thomas on the day before the sterrano.
Thomas’ victory that afternoon showed how expensive victories are, whatever the day, like Tim Merlier’s distraught face, after winning the stage in which Pogacar almost made a mess of the sprinters.
The icing on the cake of the week, and it is not because Pelayo won, was the sterrato day, a day with no news in the general classification, with many thinking about the time trial, but with a fight and a tactical alternation in the lead that was historic.
And with these we entered the time trial, a masterful head-to-head competition resolved by the best cyclist in the world on the final slope.
It is obvious that the fight for the general classification is what transcends a grand tour, which is the main argument, but let the sky not prevent us from seeing the forest and the road is full of nuances, stories and deeds.
Those by Benjamin Thomas, Pelayo, Merlier and company also deserve their space.
Image: FB Giro d’Italia
2024-05-11 16:11:57
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