CyclingRevealed's Giro Perspective
Tappa 17, May 26th, Varazze to Limone Piemonte (Colle di Tenda), 194 km
Basso’s Brilliant Ride
The Giro d’Italia rode into the very tough stage 17 in the Alps. The stage raced over 194 kms with an uphill finish on the six km ascent of the Colle di Tenda (an average gradient of 6.1% with a max of 11%). The climb’s final stretch will test all the leaders of this Giro.
The Breakaway [ Image ©: www.gazzetta.it ]
Ivan Basso having fallen more than 40 minutes behind in the General Classification won't win this year's Giro d'Italia. But Basso bravely refused to quit despite the deficit. "I never considered quitting the Giro. I came here to win and when my physical problems wouldn't allow that to happen, I had to change my focus to winning a stage," said Basso. A determined Basso roared back to the stage win with a brilliant solo ride up the Colle di Tenda.
A solo Basso on the Colle di Tenda [ Image ©: www.gazzetta.it ]
Basso and his teammate Frank Schleck drove the pace of the breakway as the peloton struggled to regroup after summit of the short but very steep Colletto del Moro. Four riders stayed with the Italian. With 6 km of the final climb to go Basso dropped them all. To the delight of the Italian tifosi Ivan Basso cruised across the finish line for a brilliant stage win!!!
Stage winner Ivan Basso [ Image ©: www.gazzetta.it ]
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