Latest news with #SarahGigante
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Tour de France Femmes 2025: stage one from Vannes to Plumelec
Update: Date: 2025-07-26T15:00:02.000Z Title: Jeremy Whittle previews the nine days ahead on the', 'Tour de France Femmes', '. Content: Jeremy Whittle previews the nine days ahead on the Tour de France Femmes. The pair have other rivals, with Marlen Reusser, winner of the Tour of Switzerland and second in the Giro d'Italia, and Elisa Longo Borghini, winner of the women's Giro, leading the way. Others capable of mounting a serious challenge include the Australian climber Sarah Gigante, France's Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, winner of the women's Paris-Roubaix, and Anna van der Breggen of the Netherlands, third in the women's Vuelta and Vollering's former sports director. Update: Date: 2025-07-26T15:00:02.000Z Title: Australia has a real hope in Sarah Gigante. Content: Update: Date: 2025-07-26T15:00:02.000Z Title: Preamble Content: Last year's race was an all-time classic, going to four seconds on Alpe D'Huez in moments of almost indescribable drama. This year's model has a lot to live up to, but the main protagonists, as Demi Vollering and Kasia Niewiadoma do battle once more. There's a host of other contenders, too. First up, a short, punchy stage set for a tea-time finish. Let's quote the excellent Rouleur Magazine's short profile of the stage. The 79km route is short but far from easy. After rolling north through lumpy terrain, the peloton tackles the Côte de Botségalo before entering a finishing circuit in Plumelec, where the Côte de Cadoudal awaits them not once, but three times. This 1.7 km climb, averaging 6.2% with a steep final pitch, will decide the stage – and the first yellow jersey. It's a day for the puncheurs, not the sprinters, and fireworks are all but guaranteed on the final ascent.
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Australia's cycling queen Sarah Gigante: ‘It's a bit mean, but I love to make others hurt'
Sarah Gigante has an infectious energy that shines through whether she is saluting after blowing away her rivals on the toughest of mountain stages, or celebrating every day as much as her successes on social media. The Australian cyclist even keeps her smile beaming while reflecting on a recent health concern that threatened to bring her promising career to a standstill. But hidden just beneath the surface is a killer instinct to 'make others hurt', as well as a steely determination to overcome challenges on and off the bike that have helped lift Gigante into the cycling form of her life. The 24-year-old is still coming to terms with the thrill and pride taken from finishing on the podium at the Giro d'Italia Donne when she was third overall behind winner Elisa Longo Borghini. Gigante finished 1min 11sec behind the Italian home favourite and defending champion, with Switzerland's Marien Reusser in between, but claimed a pair of spectacular stage wins when soloing away on mountain-top finishes and cemented her place as the best climber in the race with the Queen of the Mountains jersey. Gigante says she 'wasn't expecting even one of those four super cool results' but can't help but wonder what might have been in the race for the maglia rosa, after losing 1min 42sec on the main group including Longo Borghini and Reusser, when her team AG Insurance-Soudal were caught out in crosswinds on stage five. The three-time national champion concedes that she still has room for improvement on the flat as well as downhills, while wanting to build on her strengths in the mountains that are now allowing her to pile on the pain. 'Especially at the end of a tough race, I just love the hard work and pushing myself,' Gigante tells Guardian Australia ahead of this weekend's start to the 2025 Tour de France Femmes. 'And maybe it's a bit mean, but I love to make others hurt. 'I think that's why I'm able to come back from the setbacks, because I just love riding so much, no matter how hard it is. It's my job but mainly it's my hobby and my passion.' Gigante's ability to perform at her best in her job, let alone to just continue to enjoy her hobby and passion, were under threat as she suffered through increasingly regular and intense pain and numbness in her right leg. After several years of frustration without a diagnosis, she was finally found to suffer from iliac artery endofibrosis – a condition that affects the flow of blood and oxygen. 'The artery was all scarred and kinked but also going into spasm every time I exercised, so when I needed more blood, I was getting less,' she says. Sign up to Australia Sport Get a daily roundup of the latest sports news, features and comment from our Australian sports desk after newsletter promotion The eventual diagnosis and operation to correct the condition in December meant a nine-month layoff from world tour racing. But it has allowed Gigante to come back stronger than ever. The rapid return to form for a rider who first burst onto the scene as an 18-year-old when winning a national road race title in 2019 and posting a breakout GC result has sent an ominous warning to her rivals. But now that she is fighting fit, Gigante expects her best is still to come. 'It was actually the worst case the surgeon had seen,' Gigante says. 'Since I had it fixed, it has made such a huge difference. I don't think about my leg at all anymore. I do have two massive, really ugly scars, but I don't care because I can ride my bike again, happily but also quickly. 'It was seven weeks [after the operation] until I could ride again. It was quite a lot of waiting and trying not to think too much about the 'what-ifs'. But when I started doing max efforts I was already stronger than when I had been training at the end of last season. The power was already better, almost coming off the couch, just because I had two legs again.' Gigante now hopes to carry her renewed fitness and imposing form into the Tour de France Femmes when it begins on Saturday. It will be her second time riding the biggest stage-race on the calendar, after she was seventh on general classification behind Kasia Niewiadoma last year. The Netherlands' Demi Vollering was second when finishing a mere four seconds down on the Polish winner, after a costly and contentious crash on stage five, but is widely considered to be the rider to beat. Punchy terrain on the opening two stages this year, and sprint finishes that are expected to follow on the next couple of days, have AG Insurance-Soudal earmarking Kim Le Court as their protected GC rider rather than Gigante. The Mauritian has exposed form to challenge for yellow after winning Liège-Bastogne-Liège in April, though Gigante will aim to stay within touching distance of the GC leaders before the race heads to the mountains from stage six. The GC battle looks set to be shaken up, if not decided, on stage eight which will start with riding 13.2km uphill to Col de Plainpalais, and end with a brutal 18.6km climb at 8.1% to Col de la Madeleine. It looms as Gigante's time to attack. 'We're totally different riders,' Gigante says of combining with Le Court in a one-two punch. 'We can play off each other for stage results when the opportunity comes, but stage eight does look very nice for me with a big mountain at the end. I've definitely had my eye on that one for a while.'
ABC News
13-07-2025
- Sport
- ABC News
Australia's Sarah Gigante claims Queen of the Mountains jersey and finishes third overall at Giro d'Italia Donne
Australian Sarah Gigante has completed her dazzling maiden Giro d'Italia by finishing third overall and winning the Queen of the Mountains jersey as the top climber. While Italian home favourite Elisa Longo Borghini held on to her overnight lead to take the title for a second straight year, Gigante was thrilled to finish her breakthrough event, in which she won two mountain stages in four days, with a place on the podium. Better still, she produced the goods on the final hilly stage to take the Queen of the Mountains jersey as top climber, going past the overnight leader, Spain's Usoa Ostolaza. "I can't believe how well this week went," said Gigante, who is making a remarkable comeback to the sport after surgery last year to fix the debilitating condition, Iliac artery endofibrosis. "I never expected this. My main concern was just being able to compete again without pain." The 24-year-old follows her compatriot Neve Bradbury, who also finished third in the 2024 event, and joins Amanda Spratt (third in 2018 and 2019), Kathy Watt (second in 1994 and 3rd in 1990) and Elisabeth Hepple (second in the inaugural 1988 event) in the Giro's Australian roll of honour. After taking the race lead off Marlen Reusser on the penultimate stage, Longo Borghini successfully defended the pink jersey on the final 134km stage eight from Forlì to Imola, finishing fourth behind her Swiss rival on the day. Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) ended up victorious by 18 seconds ahead of Movistar's Reusser, with Gigante unable to make any inroads into the champion's overnight lead of 71 seconds over the Melbourne rider. The stage was won by Movistar's Liane Lippert, who beat Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) in a two-up sprint at the famous Imola racetrack, the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, after the pair had escaped from a group of a dozen riders, including Gigante, in the last 3km. The hilly route provided Gigante's key to the Queen of the Mountains blue jersey prize. She had been one point behind Ostolaza overnight, but won the first mountain sprint in Monticino to regain a lead that she wasn't about to relinquish. Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) then went on a solo breakaway to win an intermediate sprint and seal her points classification victory. "It's been an incredible Giro — for me and for the team. The last eight days were full gas: we had a common goal, and we achieved it," Longo Borghini said. AAP
SBS Australia
13-07-2025
- Sport
- SBS Australia
'Never expected this': Australian Sarah Gigante's dream comeback after major surgery
Sarah Gigante has completed her dazzling maiden Giro d'Italia by finishing third overall and winning the Queen of the Mountains jersey as the top climber. While Italian home favourite Elisa Longo Borghini held on to her overnight lead to take the title for a second straight year, Gigante was thrilled to finish her breakthrough event, in which she won two mountain stages in four days, with a place on the podium. Better still, she produced the goods on the final hilly stage to take the Queen of the Mountains jersey as top climber, going past the overnight leader, Spain's Usoa Ostolaza. "I can't believe how well this week went," said Gigante, who is making a remarkable comeback to the sport after surgery last year to fix the debilitating condition, Iliac artery endofibrosis. "I never expected this. My main concern was just being able to compete again without pain." The 24-year-old follows her countrywoman Neve Bradbury, who also finished third in the 2024 event, and joins Amanda Spratt (3rd in 2018 and 2019), Kathryn Watt (2nd in 1994 and 3rd in 1990) and Elisabeth Hepple (2nd in the inaugural 1988 event) in the Giro's Australian roll of honour. After taking the race lead off Marlen Reusser on the penultimate stage, Longo Borghini successfully defended the pink jersey on the final 134km stage eight from Forlì to Imola, finishing fourth behind her Swiss rival on the day. Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) ended up victorious by 18 seconds ahead of Movistar's Reusser, with Gigante unable to make any inroads into the champion's overnight lead of 71 seconds over the Melbourne rider. The stage was won by Movistar's Liane Lippert, who beat Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) in a two-up sprint at the famous Imola racetrack, the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, after the pair had escaped from a group of a dozen riders, including Gigante, in the last 3km. The hilly route provided Gigante's key to the Queen of the Mountains blue jersey prize. She had been lying one point behind Ostolaza overnight, but won the first mountain sprint in Monticino to regain a lead that she wasn't about to relinquish. Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) then went on a solo breakaway to win an intermediate sprint and seal her points classification victory. "It's been an incredible Giro - for me and for the team. The last eight days were full gas: we had a common goal, and we achieved it," Longo Borghini said.
Yahoo
13-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Aussie Gigante climbs the podium at Giro d'Italia
Sarah Gigante has completed her dazzling maiden Giro d'Italia by finishing third overall and winning the Queen of the Mountains jersey as the top climber. While Italian home favourite Elisa Longo Borghini held on to her overnight lead to take the title for a second straight year, Gigante was thrilled to finish her breakthrough event, in which she won two mountain stages in four days, with a place on the podium. Better still, she produced the goods on the final hilly stage to take the Queen of the Mountains jersey as top climber, going past the overnight leader, Spain's Usoa Ostolaza. 🥉 place in GC and Maglia Azzurra as the Queen of the Mountains of the Giro d'Italia Women... @SarahGigante of @agsoudal 💙🥉 terza in classifica generale e Maglia Azzurra... Sarah Gigante della AG Insurance-Soudal 💙#GirodItaliaWomen #WonderfulWomen #WOW | @UCI_WWT — Giro d'Italia Women (@girowomen) July 13, 2025 "I can't believe how well this week went," said Gigante, who is making a remarkable comeback to the sport after surgery last year to fix the debilitating condition, Iliac artery endofibrosis. "I never expected this. My main concern was just being able to compete again without pain." The 24-year-old follows her countrywoman Neve Bradbury, who also finished third in the 2024 event, and joins Amanda Spratt (3rd in 2018 and 2019), Kathryn Watt (2nd in 1994 and 3rd in 1990) and Elisabeth Hepple (2nd in the inaugural 1988 event) in the Giro's Australian roll of honour. After taking the race lead off Marlen Reusser on the penultimate stage, Longo Borghini successfully defended the pink jersey on the final 134km stage eight from Forlì to Imola, finishing fourth behind her Swiss rival on the day. Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) ended up victorious by 18 seconds ahead of Movistar's Reusser, with Gigante unable to make any inroads into the champion's overnight lead of 71 seconds over the Melbourne rider. The stage was won by Movistar's Liane Lippert, who beat Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) in a two-up sprint at the famous Imola racetrack, the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, after the pair had escaped from a group of a dozen riders, including Gigante, in the last 3km. 🇮🇹💕#GirodItaliaWomen ¡Una semana para recordar!@MarlenReusser finaliza 2° en la general tras una última etapa exigente en el circuito de Giro que cerramos con:🏆 3 victorias de etapa🥈 2° puesto en la general individual✨ Y un trabajo de equipo espectacular… — Movistar Team (@Movistar_Team) July 13, 2025 The hilly route provided Gigante's key to the Queen of the Mountains blue jersey prize. She had been lying one point behind Ostolaza overnight, but won the first mountain sprint in Monticino to regain a lead that she wasn't about to relinquish. Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) then went on a solo breakaway to win an intermediate sprint and seal her points classification victory. "It's been an incredible Giro - for me and for the team. The last eight days were full gas: we had a common goal, and we achieved it," Longo Borghini said.
