The final stage of Tirreno-Adriatico on Sunday may have ended up delivering the expected sprint but it was far from straightforward for the likes of Sam Welsford (Ineos Grenadiers) and Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) to get to the point where they could vie for victory. The climbs may have came early, but it turned out there was also another lofty challenge to overcome: Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) on the front and intent on putting in a big effort.
The climbing kicked in at less than 30km into the day of racing on the 143km stage 7, with two climbs in quick succession and while Alpecin-Premier Tech riders were swapping through to keep up the pace on the initial ascent and early on the second it was when Van der Poel took a position at the front at about 97km to go that the the field really began to splinter.
