Elisa Balsamo and Lidl-Trek are making the flat finishes at this Giro d’Italia Women look easy. On a hot 159-kilometer trek to Brescello, the Italian star sprinted to her fourth victory of the race, extending a fantastic run of form in the red points jersey.
The day was far from a straightforward parade. Crosswinds split the peloton with 50 kilometers to go, just as an early four-rider breakaway was reeled in. Lidl-Trek managed the danger, keeping Balsamo and GC leaders Isabella Holmgren and Niamh Fisher-Black attentive and tucked safely at the front of the select lead group until the race regrouped.
The closing 10 kilometers devolved into a technical positioning battle on narrow roads. Lucinda Brand hit the front at 1.3 kilometers to go and dropped Balsamo off with 200 meters left to sprint. From there, the former world champion kicked and put a bike length into the rest of the field to seal the win. Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) retained the overall pink jersey.
Results
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