In Acqui Terme on Tuesday morning, Magnus Sheffield was talking to reporters in the mixed zone when he was interrupted by his radio earpiece crackling into life. "Yeah, I can hear you, Yogi," Sheffield dutifully responded down the line to directeur sportif Ian Stannard, who was performing his routine sound checks ahead of stage 4 of the Giro d'Italia.
In a race where every day is laced with Tadej Pogačar-induced peril, it's essential to maintain the channels of communication. Ineos, who grappled with the particular intricacies of the Giro in their early years as Team Sky, have had a much firmer grip on bringing order to its chaos in the 2020s, finishing in the top two for the past four years.
