IRELAND’S SAM BENNETT powered to victory in the seventh stage of the Giro d’Italia today — beating favourite Elia Viviani in a sprint finish at Praia a Mare.
Bora-Hansgrohe rider Bennett latched onto Viviani’s wheel at the end of the flat 159km ride from Pizzo to Calabria, before bursting past the Italian to grab his first-ever win on a Grand Tour.
Britain’s Simon Yates maintained the overall lead after finishing safely in the peloton, having taken the pink jersey by finishing second in Thursday’s sixth stage.
Friday’s ride was always going to end in a bunch sprint, with Davide Ballerini the last breakaway rider to be reeled in by the main group with 14km still to go.
Quick-Step’s Viviani was widely expected to claim his second win of the Giro and looked in a good position heading into the final kilometre with a strong lead-out train.
But Bennett stuck to his rival and just pipped the home favourite to the line to become the first Irish winner of a Giro stage since Stephen Roche in 1987.
“We tried so hard in the other sprints but never got the timing right. The team did a fantastic job and I want to thank everyone who helped me get to this point,” Bennett said.
'That was genius timing!' 😱
— Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) May 11, 2018
Sam Bennett pips Elia Viviani to get his first ever Grand Tour stage win after a frantic sprint finish! 👏#Giro101 pic.twitter.com/XtcSAWjULW
“It’s very hard to get Viviani’s wheel, they all want it and I had to fight for it. I thought we had left it too late but the timing was right and I could use my power to get an advantage.”
Niccolo Bonifazio edged out his fellow Italian Sacha Modolo to complete the podium.
The general classification remained unchanged as the main contenders took a step back from the spotlight on a day for the sprinters, with Mitchelton-Scott’s Yates still leading by 16 seconds from defending champion Tom Dumoulin.
Esteban Chaves is third, a further 10 seconds adrift, with Chris Froome a minute and 10 seconds behind Yates after a difficult start to his bid for a third consecutive Grand Tour title.
“It was a nice day until the finale and sprint,” Yates said. “The break went early and never really got a gap so it was a good day.”
The overall favourites will face a far tougher assignment on Saturday as the race heads back into the mountains for the 209km eighth stage, with the final climb at Montevergine di Mercogliano 17km long with an average gradient of 5%.
- © AFP 2018; first published 16.39
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Wow ! Well done Sam !!
@Nightowl: it’s an absolute shame that success in this sport can no longer be celebrated as it should be due to its shocking doping history.
@offtheball: what sports you follow? Soccer isn’t clean, neither is rugby. Athletics? Tennis? Even golf isn’t clean. Cycling has the toughest dope testing of any sport presently. You can’t believe any sport is totally clean.
@Dermot Lane: I did say “doping history “ – and I hope your trust in their present procedures is well placed.
@offtheball: yes you did say history. So do you agree that current cyclists like Sam Bennet should not have their reputations blackened by people like yourself, for events that happened when they were just kids? Cycling isn’t 100 % clean, no, but no sport is. Where’s cycling has the strictest testing of almost any sports, some sports have their heads in the sand on the issue. Will you post a similar comment after the rugby later? Or do you only make such remarks when it’s cycling? Rugby has a very high percentage rate of doping fails recently, higher than in cycling.
Well done Sam Bennett, perfect timing on the attack. First big stage win of his career.
Delighted for him. He’s been in the mix the last few days but finally nailed it. Hopefully big things to come for him.
Brilliant stuff by the Waterford man! Well done Sam!
Great news.Irish cycling is slowly heading back to the top.Also young Eddie Dunbar finishing in the top 10 of the Tour of Yorkshire last week.
Cracking sprint! Third times the charm. He was just faster than Vivani today.
Hon the Deise
@David Mitchell: is Carrick on suir in the deise?
@Dermot Lane: Much of it yes , Sean Kelly for example is a Waterford native- from the Deise part of Carrick.
Equally Carrick United play in the Waterford Junior league.
As an aside Sam’s father Michael was one of the Blues finest ever players
@Dermot Lane: depends on which side if the river Suir you live in. One part is in Waterford Carrick beg. ..the other in Tipperary.
So proud. Well done Sam from all in Carrick on Suir
Smashed it! He was so close in Israel too! Delighted he got the win today!
Doped to the eyeballs the lot of them
@paddy: there’s always one.
@paddy: thanks Paddy, I’ve just won the pool on how many comments on the 42 before drugs would be attributed to his win. Ya dope!!
@paddy: well if you think they’re “all doped to the eyeballs” it’s an even playing pitch and nobody has an advantage.
@Colm Dillon: gullible
@paddy: do you make that comment about all sports? Or just cycling? If it’s the latter, you need to do some research and educate yourself.
Drugs drugs drugs drugs
@Morgan Freeman: We get a win and somebody has too knock it .
@Morgan Freeman: blahs blahs blahs blahs
@Andy Harding: drugs in every single professional sport but cycling has a serious problem. Look at the stats alone. People just can’t do it.
@Andy Harding: Don’t think anybody knocking him, people think of Armstrong, Wiggins, Froome and just get p…ed off
@Morgan Freeman: you are an idiot