Giro d'Italia - Simon Yates: Maybe I went a little bit too easy at the start
May 12 2019 03:50 am CET
Photo of Simon Yates by Mitchelton-Scott
Mitchelton-Scott's Simon Yates has finished in the second overall position after the opening stage of the Giro d'Italia. The Briton was the penultimate rider to start the individual time trial.
The first stage of the Corsa Rosa was an eight-kilometre long individual time trial in Bologna in which Jumbo-Visma's Primoz Roglic was the fastest rider, taking the first Pink Jersey of the race. Yates was the penultimate rider to go down the ramp and he finished the stage at 19 seconds from the Slovenian.
"I did all I could," said Yates at the end of the stage. "Maybe I went a little bit too easy at the start but that was also the tactic, you can’t go full gas start to finish I knew I could gain or lose a lot of time of the climb. It was only a little bit, but it was calculated.
"I felt good. It was only a short effort of course, but I feel good."
The rider commented on the winner of the stage, Roglic, who has shown a good performance not only in the race but in all the other races he has been so far in 2019. "We’ve seen how (Roglic) has been going this year, he’s won every stage race he has started and he also won the time trial in Romandie so he is in great form so we were expecting him to be either first or second.
While most of the GC favourites decided to start the time trial earlier to avoid the rain that was forecast for later in the day, Yates was the last rider of Mitchelton-Scott to go down the ramp. "There was a moment of doubt when I saw everyone was going off early today but we looked at the weather and it looked like it was going to be ok, and it was in the end.
"I am happy the race has started now, I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time and we’re finally here."
Giro d'Italia - Simon Yates: Maybe I went a little bit too easy at the start https://t.co/O7cmiUGyrn #Giro #Giro102
— CyclingPub (@CyclingPub) May 11, 2019
? LaPresse pic.twitter.com/oy9iMwWKAq
SUBSCRIBE TO RSS FEEDS