Although the Tour of Italy 2022 It has been one of the most decaffeinated editions of recent times, some runners have shone with their own light to leave their mark, whether it was in breakaways, massive sprints or high mountains. Next, we review the names that have been more protagonists in this 105th edition of the Italian round:
Jay Hindley
The Australian gets the first big lap of his record at 26 years old. To his pink jersey he adds a great stage win at the top of the Blockhaus, where he came from behind in the last kilometer to beat Bardet, Carapaz and Landa in the sprint. His consistency has given him the Giro, as he did not have a bad day and was able to overcome a difficult situation in Turin, when he recovered almost half a minute behind Carapaz. Deserved victory for a Hindley who, however, is hard to see beating the copper in other big events against rivals such as Pogacar, Roglic or Bernal, among others.
Arnaud Demare
The Frenchman has been the undisputed king of the volatas in this Giro. He has won the ciclamino jersey, the second in his record, with absolute authority against rivals such as Cavendish, Gaviria, Ewan or Nizzolo. Démare leaves the Corsa Rosa with three partial wins (no one has achieved as many) and with the honor of having become the Frenchman with the most victories in the history of the Italian round. His better condition compared to his rivals to overcome the high mountain days with greater freshness has been key in his performance.
Koen Bouwmann
The Dutchman has been the king of breakaways in this Giro, with two mountain stage victories. In addition, these two wins have been the first of his record in grand tours, without a doubt, a worthy reward for his gregarious work. As if that were not enough, Bouwman scored the mountain classification with great superiority over runners like Ciccone and Rosa. Notable haul of the Jumbo-Visma in this Giro after the disappointments of Dumoulin and Foss: two wins and the maglia azzurra.
Juanpe Lopez
Years will pass and the Giro d’Italia 2022 will always be remembered as The Giro of Juanpe López. The man from Lebrija (24 years old) uncovered his enormous potential in this Corsa Rosa with a second place on top of Etna that allowed him to wear the pink jersey for ten days. In the last days, also favored by the abandonment of Almeida, he managed the efforts to get a double prize: his first top-10 in a grand tour and the white jersey of the best young man of the race. His progression excites him for the future.
Biniam Girmay
The Eritrean signed a Giro for history, in every way, in his first participation in a three-week race. In a matter of hours, Bini went around the world with something never seen in cycling: he became the first black African to win a grand tour stage (beating an entire Van der Poel in the sprint) and left the day following after suffering a corchazo in the eye during his celebration on the podium. With 22 years and what he has already shown, it is impossible to imagine all the good that he will offer in the future. a prodigy
Santiago Buitrago
Buitrago has become, in his own right, the new great promise of Colombian cycling. Santi, as his teammate and friend Mikel Landa calls him, has shown the world his enormous talent as a climber in this Giro and, who knows, his ability to attack grand tours in the future. Conditions, of course, he has, especially in a high mountain where he won a solo stage at the Lavarone finish line. His mental toughness, despite being only 22 years old, is also remarkable, as he managed to overcome just two days after the moral blow that it meant for him (he finished in tears) finishing second in Cogne. The Quintanas, Superman, Bernal and company take over…
#great #protagonists #Giro #dItalia