Damiano Caruso finished third on Stage 17 of the Giro d’Italia, taking another strong result for Bahrain Victorious in Andalo and moving into the top 10 in the general classification, while Afonso Eulálio retained the Maglia Bianca.
Michael Valgren (EF Education-EasyPost) won the stage after attacking in the final kilometre, with Andreas Leknessund (Uno-X Mobility) second and Caruso third after a strong ride from the day’s breakaway.
The 202km stage from Cassano d’Adda to Andalo was expected to be a day for the breakaway, with a flat opening part before the route became more demanding in the second half. The riders faced Passo dei Tre Termini and Cocca di Lodrino before the final section towards Molveno and Andalo, where the race opened up again on the last part into the finish.
The stage was aggressive from the beginning, with many riders trying to enter the breakaway after the first kilometres on flat roads. Caruso was alert in the early part of the race and eventually made it into the main move, giving the team, representation at the front on a stage that was difficult to control.
The breakaway stayed clear into the final part of the stage, where the front group reduced and the attacks started. Caruso remained in contention through the final kilometres and played his cards in the closing phase, crossing the line third, six seconds behind Valgren, who secured the stage victory with a late move.
The result also moved Caruso into the top 10 in the General Classification, adding further value to his podium finish on a day where he spent much of the stage in the breakaway.
Speaking after the stage, Caruso said:
“It was really hard today. From the beginning, everyone knew it could be a breakaway stage, so I think almost 170 riders tried to join the move. It was a big fight, especially in the first part, because it was completely flat.
Then, on the first KOM, I tried to make it across and finally joined the breakaway. After that, it was a long day with many riders in front, and in the final it became really hard. When we were down to 10 or 12 riders, everyone started attacking each other, and I have to say I was on the limit.
But I was also smart to play my cards until the end. To finish on the podium means a lot for me. I am almost 39 years old, this is my last Giro d’Italia, and my dream is to leave this race with a great memory. Of course, I missed the victory, but honestly, I feel like I won today, because once again I showed myself that I have character.
I want to say thank you for all the support, especially from the staff and the team, because they believed in me, and that means a lot. And of course, thank you to all the fans cheering for me during the whole day and during these three weeks. I’m happy, and that is the most important thing.”
Eulálio finished safely with the GC group and retained the Maglia Bianca, keeping the lead in the young rider classification with four stages remaining.
Afonso Eulálio said:
“One more day in the white jersey. We are super happy for one more day in the Maglia Bianca. Today we had Damiano in the breakaway, he had the opportunity and he took it, so this is really good.
Of course, we wanted the victory. I think Damiano deserved it, and the team would have been super happy with one more win, but we still have more opportunities in the next days.
For me, with the jersey, I arrived safely in the final with the GC group, and that was the main thing today. I want to thank once again to all the team.”
Sports Director Franco Pellizotti said:
“We are really happy and proud of Damiano today. It was a good opportunity for him to go for the stage, especially in his last Giro d’Italia, and he fought until the end. It was not easy in such a big group with many strong riders, but he managed the race well and reached the podium. We are happy and proud of his effort.”
The Giro d’Italia continues tomorrow with Stage 18 from Fai della Paganella to Pieve di Soligo, a 171km stage with another profile suited to attacks before the final mountain stages of the race”.
