Afonso Eulálio held onto the Maglia Bianca after Stage 16 of the Giro d’Italia, finishing 11th on a hot mountain day from Bellinzona to Carì.
The 113km stage, raced entirely in Switzerland, opened the final week with a short but hard test: 2,928 metres of climbing, repeated ascents through Torre and Leontica, and a final climb to Carì that left no room to hide. With temperatures close to 30°C, the heat also became an important part of the day, making hydration and energy management key from the start.
Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) took the stage victory after attacking on the final climb and riding solo to the finish, with Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) second and Jai Hindley (Red Bull–BORA–hansgrohe) third. Behind them, the GC group split again on the steep road to Carì, with several riders losing time in the final kilometres.
For Bahrain Victorious, Eulálio stayed in the fight and crossed the line in 11th place, 3’04” behind Vingegaard. The result keeps the Portuguese rider fifth overall in the general classification, 5’40” behind the Maglia Rosa, while also defending his lead in the young rider classification.
After Stage 16, Eulálio continues in the Maglia Bianca with a 2’17” advantage over Davide Piganzoli (Team Visma | Lease a Bike), and 4’23” over Mathys Rondel (Tudor Pro Cycling Team).
Afonso Eulálio said:
“One more day we keep the white jersey, and that is super important for us. It gives me something extra, some power to continue fighting every day.
I think I’m still not ready for the podium or those big places in a Grand Tour. The riders in front are super strong, and I’m just happy to share the podium with Jonas for so many days already. We just keep fighting.
I’m very happy with the way we are working, and that the team believes in me and continues to believe in me. There are five more days to finish the Giro, and we just have to keep fighting and keep working well for the next days.
Today we had a super hard climb in the final. I had good support, with the guys helping me and giving me motivation in the last part. I’m super happy to keep the jersey.
Pellizzari didn’t have his best day today, but Piganzoli and the other guys are getting closer and they are riding very strong. I hope I can continue with good legs. We have five more days, and we just keep fighting”.
Franco Pellizotti said after the stage:
“Today was a short but very demanding stage, especially in the final. The pace was high from the start to the finish, also with the tailwind making the race even faster.
The guys did an amazing job. They stayed with Afonso almost until the bottom of the final climb, and from there he managed it very well. He was dropped early, but he kept his own pace, stayed calm, and came back close to riders like Rondel and Storer in the end.
We are happy with this performance. To finish 11th on a stage like this its amazing result.”
The Giro continues tomorrow with Stage 17 from Cassano d’Adda to Andalo, another long and important day as the race moves deeper into its final week.
