Giro d’Italia stage 4: Carapaz claims win after crash hit run-in
A crash in the final 6km looks to have ruled Tom Dumoulin out of overall contention, while Simon Yates and Vincenzo Nibali also concede time
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Ecuadorian climber Richard Carapaz (Movistar) claimed victory on the fourth stage of the Giro d’Italia on Tuesday ahead of sprinter Caleb Ewan (Lotto-Soudal).
Meanwhile Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) claimed sixth place on the stage to retain his overall lead on a day in which another late crash resulted in a shake up on the GC.
The incident with 6km remaining caused splits that saw a group of just 12 riders lead onto the final ascent towards the line. A second spill in one of the chase groups meant further chaos for overall contenders.
Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) and Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida) lost a handful of seconds in second and third place overall, while Tom Dumoulin (Sunweb) limped-in over four minutes down with blood pouring down his left leg and surrounded by team mates.
Carapaz, who himself lost time in the chaotic finale of Monday’s third stage, made his move with 600m remaining. Getting a jump on the curious mix of climbers and sprinters still in contention for the stage, he opened enough of a gap that even Ewan couldn’t close it once he got into full gallop mode at the crest of the rise.
“I knew that there were some fast people in the group and I looked for my distance which is about 600m to go,” said Carapaz, also a stage winner last year. “I just went for it.
“Yesterday was a bad day for me: I broke a wheel and lost some time,” he added. “I always have a mentality that if I lose a few seconds, you can always get them back.”
The 235km stage took the race from yesterday’s stage finish in Orbetello to Frascati, just outside of Rome. The finale around the outskirts of Italy’s capital had some sport directors questioning safety on the route.
For most of the day the race was led by a three man breakaway comprising Damiano Cima (Nippo-Vini Fantini), Marco Frapporti (Androni-Giacattoli) and Mirco Maestri (Bardiani-CSF). With 20km to go, Cima was dropped from the move. But with the lead pair’s gap reduced to just over a minute at this point, they held little hope of holding out.
Led by multiple trains hoping to set up their contenders for the finish, the break was eventually reeled back in with 10km to go. But it was Salvatore Puccio’s touch of wheels near the front of the bunch that really shaped the stage.
“Crashes are part of the sport, unfortunately,” reflected Yates.
Results will be available once stage has completed.