Alberto Bettiol attacked at the top of the final climb to ride solo to victory on stage 13 of the Giro d’Italia on Friday, five years after his last stage win, with Portugal’s Afonso Eulalio maintaining the overall lead.
Bettiol (XDS Astana), who also soloed to win a stage in 2021, caught Andreas Leknessund as they reached the Ungiasca summit and left the Norwegian in his wake before powering away on the descent.
The Italian took a quick glance over his shoulder before raising his arms long before the line in celebration, and his girlfriend, a Verbania native, was there to hug him after the finish.
Leknessund (Uno-X Mobility) came in 26 seconds behind in second, with Belgian Jasper Stuyven (Soudal Quick-Step) winning a four-rider sprint to take third.
Eulalio (Bahrain Victorious) was at the head of the peloton which trailed in over 13 minutes behind the winner to stay 33 seconds ahead of Jonas Vingegaard at the top of the General Classification.
Saturday’s stage 14 should bring more of a shake-up in the GC, with a 133-km mountain stage from Aosta to Pila.
Reuters
