Vingegaard seizes control of the Giro d’Italia with solo win on brutal 14th stage

PILA, Italy (AP) — Pre-race favorite Jonas Vingegaard moved into the overall lead of the Giro d’Italia on Saturday, emphatically taking control of the race by soloing to victory on the brutal 14th stage.

Vingegaard attacked on the daunting climb to the finish with just under five kilometers remaining, and no one could follow. The Team Visma-Lease a Bike rider beat Felix Gall by 49 seconds, and Jai Hindley was nine seconds further back.

The 133-kilometer (83-mile) route from Aosta included five climbs, two of them ranked category one, including a huge 16-kilometer (10-mile) slog up to the finish at Pila.

It was the third mountain-top finish in this year’s race and a third victory for Vingegaard, who triumphed atop Blockhaus and Corno alle Scale.

“This one is the one I will remember the most,” Vingegaard said. “Today we made a plan from the start with the team; we wanted to control the race and that’s what my teammates did and they did an incredible job the whole day.

“It was really impressive how they rode. I’m so proud of my teammates and I’m proud that I can pay them back. It’s a super nice win.”

Afonso Eulálio, who had been in pink since finishing second in the fifth stage, was dropped on the final climb and finished nearly three minutes behind Vingegaard.

The young Portuguese rider managed to remain second in the overall standings, 2:26 behind Vingegaard and 24 seconds ahead of Gall, who moved into third.

“We were expecting this,” Eulálio said. “Jonas is Jonas. Yesterday I already told him he won this stage, you know, and I just keep fighting at the finish line and that’s it … I don’t like so much long, long climbs.”

Sunday’s 15th stage will offer the riders some respite before a tough final week in the high mountains. The entirely flat 157-kilometer (98-mile) route starts in Voghera and ends with four laps of a circuit in Milan.

The Giro ends on May 31 in Rome.

The women’s Giro from May 30-June 7 will be defended by Italian rider Elisa Longo Borghini.

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AP cycling: https://apnews.com/hub/cycling