Biniam Girmay had a dream, he wanted to win a stage of Giro d’Italia before 24 May, before his country’s independence day, he finally got his wish fulfilled. Girmay made history with his stellar stage ten victory in Giro d’Italia. With this win, he has now become the first black African rider to ever win a Grand Tour stage.
During the last stretch of the race (500m), teammate Domenico Pozzovivo catapulted Girmay off to the front. With his amazing skills and tactics, Girmay was able to fight off Mark Cavendish and make it to the finish line while nailing the pedals to the medal.
Girmay also attracted a lot of praise and applause from fellow cyclists, especially Mathieu Van Der Poel when he gave up on competing against his rival in stage ten. Van Der Poel gave Biniam a thumbs up as he crossed the finish line, the Dutchman at that time knew that he won’t be able to compete against the powerhouse that Girmay had become.
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Apart from Girmay, Juan Pedro López (Trek-Segafredo) also did a very good job as he retained his overall GC ranking. He gave a tough time to João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates) as a tactic to make sure that he stayed behind him no matter what.
How It Went Down
The whole Peloton was excited and also refreshed for the stage ten of the Giro d’Italia. They enjoyed a rest day on Monday which was well-deserved after the tough first half of the Giro, this rest and patience definitely paid off.
Juan Pedro Lopex (Trek-Segafredo) was still in possession of the Maglia Rosa when he started the race. His GC ranking, however, was trimmed down to 12-seconds by João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates).
As expected, the start of the race saw a lot of attacks from all directions but none of them actually stick. The ferocity of the attacks increased but a lead group containing Alessandro De Marchi (Israel-Premier Tech), Mattia Bais (Drone Hopper-Androni Giocattoli), and Lawrence Naesen (AG2R Citroën) put a lot of difference between them and the Peloton as they raced ahead.
The race also saw some crashes, as Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers) crashed in the last 80km of the race, but he managed to bounce back. The whole situation got really tense in the last kilometers when everyone was either aiming for the finish line or launching/fending off attacks. Girmay showed inhumane strength and tackled the attacks while pounding the pedals for the finish. Mahieu Van Der Poel knew that he was no match for Girmay and gave his rival a thumbs up as he crossed the finish line.
This was truly a historic day!
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Featured Image Via YouTube/Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert
