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The Independent
30-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Isaac del Toro holds firm in battle for pink jersey as Richard Carapaz threatens late Giro d'Italia twist
Nicolas Prodhomme claimed the first Grand Tour stage win of his career when he rode solo to victory on stage 19 of the Giro d'Italia, while Mexico's pink jersey holder Isaac del Toro came second to extend his overall lead. On their penultimate day in the mountains, the riders faced a brutal 166 km ride from Biella to Champoluc with five classified climbs and a total elevation gain of nearly 5,000 metres. Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale's Prodhomme broke free on the fourth climb to take the lead and eventually the victory to become the first Frenchman to win a Giro stage this year. "I've worked a lot for this Giro d'Italia. I didn't want to compete for the GC (general classification), I wanted to try and win a stage. I've waited for long for this win to come," Prodhomme said. "I won my first race three weeks ago (on the Tour of the Alps) but to win at the Giro d'Italia makes me very happy. It's a beautiful day." Prodhomme had attacked with over seven kilometres left to the summit and he quickly put distance between himself and stage 15 winner Carlos Verona and Antonio Tiberi while the group with Del Toro was more than a minute behind. As the general classification battle raged behind him, the 28-year-old pushed ahead and on the home stretch, he emerged through a cloud of pink smoke, holding his helmet in disbelief as he crossed the line to win by nearly a minute. "Our breakaway didn't have a big gap. I didn't feel great when I followed the first attacks. My legs were stiff on the first climb. Kilometre after kilometre, I felt better on the bike," Prodhomme added. "On Col de Joux, I realised that I needed to take risks - otherwise we were going nowhere... Before today I've had two top-five finishes because I don't take a lot of risks. Today I wanted to play for the win." Richard Carapaz, who was second in the general classification, attacked with 6.8 kilometres left but UAE Team Emirates rider Del Toro responded by staying glued to his wheel as they left third-placed Simon Yates behind. Del Toro then beat his closest rival in the sprint to the finish to take second place and remain the firm favourite for the title with two stages left after his other rivals lost 24 seconds or more. Del Toro's lead is now 43 seconds over Carapaz while Yates is a minute and 21 seconds behind in third. "I had the legs to be with Richard... I cannot take more risks but today was incredible," Del Toro said. "Everyone in our country is starting to see how hard cycling is. It's just incredible... I can't believe I'm the guy representing the country!"
The Guardian
30-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Giro d'Italia: Prodhomme takes first Grand Tour stage as Del Toro extends lead
Nicolas Prodhomme claimed the first Grand Tour stage victory of his career when he rode solo to victory on stage 19 of the Giro d'Italia on Friday, while pink jersey holder Isaac Del Toro came second to extend his overall lead. On their penultimate day in the mountains, the riders faced a brutal 166 km ride from Biella to Champoluc with five classified climbs and a total elevation gain of nearly 5,000 metres. Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale's Prodhomme broke free on the fourth climb to take the lead and eventually the victory to become the first Frenchman to win a Giro stage this year. As the general classification battle raged behind him, the 28-year-old emerged through a cloud of pink smoke on the home stretch, holding his helmet in disbelief as he crossed the line. Richard Carapaz, who was second in the general classification, attacked with 6.8km left but Del Toro responded by staying glued to his wheel as they left third-placed Simon Yates behind. But Del Toro then beat his closest rival in the sprint to the finish to take second place and remain the firm favourite for the title with two stages left after his other rivals lost 24 seconds or more.
CNA
30-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
Prodhomme solos to Giro stage 19 win in mountains, Del Toro extends overall lead
Nicolas Prodhomme claimed the first Grand Tour stage victory of his career when he rode solo to victory on stage 19 of the Giro d'Italia on Friday, while pink jersey holder Isaac Del Toro came second to extend his overall lead. On their penultimate day in the mountains, the riders faced a brutal 166 km ride from Biella to Champoluc with five classified climbs and a total elevation gain of nearly 5,000 metres. Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale's Prodhomme broke free on the fourth climb to take the lead and eventually the victory to become the first Frenchman to win a Giro stage this year. As the general classification battle raged behind him, the 28-year-old emerged through a cloud of pink smoke on the home stretch, holding his helmet in disbelief as he crossed the line. Richard Carapaz, who was second in the general classification, attacked with 6.8 kilometres left but Del Toro responded by staying glued to his wheel as they left third-placed Simon Yates behind. But Del Toro then beat his closest rival in the sprint to the finish to take second place and remain the firm favourite for the title with two stages left after his other rivals lost 24 seconds or more.
Associated Press
30-05-2025
- General
- Associated Press
Del Toro stays in pink at Giro d'Italia after first of two massive mountain showdowns
CHAMPOLUC, Italy (AP) — One down, one to go. Isaac Del Toro maintained his tight grip on the Giro d'Italia pink jersey on Friday, the first of two massive alpine days. Del Toro even managed to increase his advantage slightly as the Mexican rider edged closest challenger Richard Carapaz to claim second place on the 19th stage and precious bonus seconds. The duo crossed the line 58 seconds behind Nicolas Prodhomme, who claimed the biggest victory of his career on the Queen stage. Del Toro inched to 43 seconds ahead of Carapaz overall. Simon Yates remained third but slipped to one minutes, 22 seconds behind Del Toro. The stage featured 5,000 meters of elevation across five climbs — three of which were of the highest classification — on a 166-kilometer (103-mile) route from Biella to Champoluc. Prodhomme was part of a large breakaway right at the start of the stage, and he pulled clear of the remaining escapees on the penultimate climb up the Col de Joux to solo to victory. The French cyclist had a broad smile on his face as he approached the finish and he then sat up and stretched out his arms before putting his hands over his face, in disbelief, as he crossed the line. The winner of the Giro will almost certainly be decided in another mountain showdown on Saturday before the mostly ceremonial finish in Rome the following day. The penultimate stage is a 205-kilometer (127-mile) leg from Verres to Sestriere that features the beyond-category climb on a gravel road to Colle delle Finestre, where Chris Froome's audacious attack in 2018 earned him the title. ___ AP cycling:
The Independent
30-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
Giro d'Italia Stage 19 preview: First of mountainous weekend double-header to decide GC
The 2025 Giro d'Italia comes to a head this weekend with a mountainous double-header of late Alpine stages that could yet see a massive shakeup of the general classification. The first is today's 166km run from Biella to Champoluc, with 4,950m of altitude gain – the most of this year's race – condensed into a relatively short stage, and the classic shark's-tooth profile indicating that the pressure is on the GC contenders all day. After a brief 4km descent out of Biella the profile is more or less up and down all day, with five categorised climbs, the first a category-three at Croce Serra 15km in, three cat-ones, and a cat-two to finish things off. From Croce Serra there's a short false flat leading to Verres, which kicks off those three cat-one climbs, each over 15km and leading straight into each other by long descents. The 16km Col Tzecore - making only its second appearance in the Giro – hits 15 per cent on its steepest slopes and averages 12 per cent for the final 4km. Its descent winds down and through the intermediate sprint at Chatillon before kicking back uphill to the Col de Saint-Pantaleon, which averages 7.2 per cent, and the Col de Joux, at average gradients of 6.9 per cent. The Col de Joux is followed by a short descent to Brusson heading straight into the 9.5km final climb to Antagnod, which hits 11 per cent, and ends 5km from the finish line. It's not a summit finish, with the terrain falling sharply from 3km to go, and a series of switchbacks taking the riders under the flamme rouge into Champoluc. The final kilometre is cobbled up until 400m to go, when it drags up to the line for one last climb. Route map and profile Start time Stage 19 will start at 12.20pm local time (11.20am BST) and finish at around 5.30pm local time (4.30pm BST). Prediction If a breakaway manages to hold off the GC charge, it's almost last chance saloon for Romain Bardet, who has two more opportunities to win a Giro stage and complete the Grand Tour set. But this feels too crucial a GC stage for that to be allowed to happen, sadly for fans of ciclismo and the Frenchman. Of the GC favourites, Simon Yates and Richard Carapaz have it all to do this weekend to make up time on the pink jersey and have both climbed brilliantly so far, Yates showing brief signs of weakness on stage 17 but the Ecuadorian was near-flawless in the opening two and a half weeks. But the short final descent and kick back up to the line suit Isaac del Toro, who escaped from Carapaz and Romain Bardet on the final downhill to win stage 17, and seems to think the best form of defence of his pink jersey is attack. The high mountains on stage 16 clearly didn't suit him, but he has looked brighter since then and has won on this sort of terrain and altitude before, at the Col de la Loze in the Tour de l'Avenir, so it's not a given that he'll suffer again today.
