Tadej Pogacar crosses the finish line first in the seventh stage of the Giro d'Italia. The route, winding through the villages and hills of Umbria, saw the Slovenian finish the race after an impressive time trial performance. The athlete from UAE Team Emirates is the only one to beat Filippo Ganna's performance despite the strong wind. The Italian had stopped the clock at 52'01", the Slovenian prodigy surpassed him by 17" recording 51'44", making up a good 1'04" in the last uphill stretch with gradients between 12% and 15%.
A more than lackluster performance for the former runner-up, Geraint Thomas, who finishes a full 2 minutes behind Pogacar, also suffering from the wind and probably also from the choice to mount a huge 66-tooth chainring (64 for Ganna, 60 for Pogacar). It's the second victory at the Giro 2024 for the leader of the general classification, who now sees a clear path to the final victory after this historic performance and in view of tomorrow's stage, climbing to Prati di Tivo starting from Spoleto, 152 km.
"I am very happy with the feelings I had on the time trial bike. I hadn't ridden one since the world championships last year, but in the meantime, I have worked a lot on this aspect and I'm glad it paid off today. I started at an easier pace to get used to the bike, then I tackled the climb at full speed. It was a stretch more suited to me than to Pippo Ganna. It won't be the same in the next time trial. I know the finish at Prati di Tivo. It was the queen stage when I won there at the Tirreno-Adriatico two years ago, but this time it's a stage of a Grand Tour," said the winner of the seventh stage, a time trial, and Maglia Rosa Tadej Pogacar, immediately after finishing.
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