When pre-race favorite Lorena Wiebes was expelled from the Giro following Stage 1 for riding a bike that failed to meet the minimum weight limit, the stage victory and race lead were retroactively handed to Balsamo. After receiving the maglia rosa under bizarre administrative circumstances on Saturday, Lidl-Trek’s Elisa Balsamo hit the start line of Stage 2 with a massive point to prove.
Early in the stage, an all-Italian breakaway consisting of Eleonora La Bella, Elisa De Vallier, and Sara Luccon rolled clear, building an advantage of around six minutes in the 30°C heat. La Bella swept up the mountain points on the Muro di Ca’ del Poggio to secure the first mountains jersey of the race.
The sprint teams kept the pace under control, reeling the trio back in with 13 kilometers remaining. Once the breakaway was neutralized, the sprint trains wound up. The run-in along the Adriatic coast was fast and frantic, with Lidl-Trek, SD Worx-Protime, and UAE Team ADQ all burning matches at the front of the peloton as they navigated the wide seaside roads.
In the final 600 meters, after surviving a sharp left-hand bend onto the finishing straight, Balsamo found herself perfectly positioned. When Charlotte Kool opened up her sprint on the opposite side of the road, Balsamo surged through the center, overpowering the Fenix-Premier Tech rider and holding off a challenge from UAE Team ADQ’s rising star Lara Gillespie.
Balsamo took the victory and secured ten bonus seconds to extend her lead in the General Classification ahead of Gillespie. The Lidl-Trek leader will wear pink again for Stage 3’s rolling run to Buja.
Results
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