After Arnaud Démare’s victory in Sicily yesterday, the Giro got back on the mainland on Wednesday. In Calabria, the stage suited more the breakaway or the climbers, so the French champion and his teammates tried to spare their energy as much as possible. However, the Omnium world champion Benjamin Thomas, unwell for two days, was forced to retire shortly after halfway.
“We could celebrate the victory properly”, Sébastien Joly
After the shortest online stage of the 2020 Giro on Tuesday, the riders immediately headed to the ferry supposed to bring them back to the mainland, where the Corsa Rosa was set to continue today. Although the conditions were not perfect to celebrate the first victory of the French champion, they were still enough. “The transfer went very well,” confirmed Sébastien Joly. “In total, it took us 3h30 to reach the hotel. Three riders got their massage on the bus, which allowed us to take the lead in terms of recovery, and the others had theirs at the hotel. They all gathered for dinner around 9:30 pm and we could then celebrate this great victory properly, with a bit of Prosecco, the local “champagne”. However, the riders still made the most of the recovery prior to the third longest stage of the Giro (225 kilometers), which required a very early start. “In addition to being quite long, the stage was quite tough today since there was quite an elevation gain on the menu (4700)”, Sébastien recalled.
On this stage 5, the Groupama-FDJ riders then took it easy in the bunch. Filippo Ganna, member of an eight-man morning breakaway and already a winner in the inaugural time trial, soloed to a second win. Arnaud Démare and his teammates finished less than half an hour later, after almost 6.30 hours in the saddle. “The time limit was not the same as in the Etna since the stage’s category was different,” said Sébastien. “It was a little shorter and we had to manage our effort well. We figured it would be between 40 and 45 minutes and it was eventually 43 minutes. Therefore, there was no worry or panic in the way we rode the stage.” However, only seven of the team’s riders completed the day’s stage, as Benjamin Thomas was forced to retire along the way.
“It’s always unfortunate to lose a rider”, Sébastien Joly
“He had not been feeling great for two days,” explained Sébastien Joly. “We hoped his health would improve, even if it is not easy on a Grand Tour. It did not. As of Monday evening, we made him undergo a Covid test in order to reassure him but also to reassure the whole team. RCS has set up molecular tests that get results in twenty minutes. They are on the finish line every day, but we can also call them to the hotel and that’s what we did. We can thank the organization, because it allows us to quickly dismiss any doubt.” Unlucky on day one with the wind changing, Benjamin Thomas could not play his cards in the opening time trial, and he won’t be able to do so in the next ones either, nor take part in the team effort. “It’s a pity he had to abandon. We lost a good rider, who was important in the sprint’s preparation,” added Sébastien. “We were actually considering placing him in front of Miles to see what it could be like. We will not have the opportunity to do so. It’s always unfortunate to lose a rider on a Grand Tour, but it’s part of the sport”.
Without its Omnium world champion, the Groupama-FDJ team will then pursue its adventure on this Giro and will, as from tomorrow, discover the gorgeous city of Matera. “This is one of the stages where we put a question mark,” concluded Sébastien. “It looks doable, but it will all depend on the speed. If it is very high, it can explode even on that final climb, which is long but not really steep. From this point of view, it will be a little different from the Agrigento’ finale on day two. Also, two even more suitable stages will follow, so it will also depend on how Arnaud sees it: whether he wants to aim for all three stages or rather skip one and focus on the other two. We will define our tomorrow’s approach only after talking to him tonight, and depending on what his feelings were today”.
No comment