Published on : 10/11/2020
The Cofidis riders managed to overcome a particularly difficult stage with more than 4000m of difference in altitude, low temperatures (8°C) and heavy showers. The rest day on Monday came at just the right time before they set off again for the second part of the Giro to aim for a stage victory.
It was one of the most important stages of this Giro, a mix of many challenges. This Sunday's program for this 9th stage included more than 4000 meters of positive elevation gain and four passes, two of which were 1st category. To make matters worse, the weather complicated the riders' task with increasingly heavy showers.
Rossetto kept going, Edet is back in shape
This 103rd Giro is hardly gentle with the riders : all the mountain stages were run in the rain since the beginning. Stéphane Rossetto, slightly suffering these last few days, got left behind. Nevertheless, he worked hard to catch up with the grupetto and managed to finish the stage with courage.
As for Nicolas Edet, who crashed twice at the beginning of the Giro, he is showing that he is back to his top level with every new stage. The best climber of the last Paris-Nice stayed in the pink jersey group for a long time before being outdistanced about ten kilometers from the finish.
Now the riders will finally be able to take a breather after nine days of competition. Tonight, the team will reach the seaside town of Vasto on the Adriatic coast. It is there that the runners will take advantage of a day of rest this Monday before taking back the road on Tuesday and continuing to climb up the coast towards the North.
THEY SAID...
NICOLAS EDET:
"We've been fighting with the team for two days to be in the breakaway. Unfortunately, we are not yet rewarded for our efforts. Physically, I feel that my strength is coming back, that things are getting better. This first part of the Giro was difficult, I was not far from giving up. Now that I'm starting to get back into shape, I'm going to do everything I can to win a stage victory in the second part of this Giro".
ROBERTO DAMIANI, sports director:
"This is a typical stage in central Italy, very difficult. In addition to almost 5000 meters of difference in altitude, the riders had to face rain and cold. This requires an incredible discharge of energy. We tried to be proactive at the beginning of the stage and afterwards we did everything we could to make sure that our riders managed to reach the finish. Stéphane (Rossetto) had some difficulties but he succeeded to reach the finish with the grupetto. For sure, the rest day will be good for the organizations".
CÉDRIC VASSEUR, general manager:
"We knew it was going to be a difficult day from the start. We saw that the breakaway took a long time to get out and that there were a lot of quality riders in it. We had to admit that we couldn't afford to compete with those who fought for victory. On the other hand, NIicolas Edet shows that he is returning to his best condition, despite his crashes at the beginning of the Giro. He was close to accompany the pink jersey group till the finish. The most important thing is that everyone is still together on the eve of a rest day that really helps."