Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) doubled up on stage wins at the 2024 Giro d’Italia on stage 11, proving to be too big and too powerful once again as a messy sprint in Francavilla al Mare saw a crash for the likes of Fabio Jakobsen (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) in the final kilometre.
Milan stayed safe throughout the hectic finale until he latched onto Tim Merlier’s (Soudal-QuickStep) train in the final few hundred metres and blasted past the Belgian to the line for his fifth win of the season.
Merlier hit the front first after a strong Bert Van Lerberghe lead-out but swung out sharply to the right-hand side, forcing Juan Sebastian Molano (UAE Team Emirates) to stop his sprint momentarily. The Colombian threw his hand up in appeal over the line and after the stage finish, Merlier was subsequently relegated for his move in the finale.
Merlier must’ve thought he was going to win his second stage at this year’s Giro until the big frame of Milan came through on his left in the maglia ciclamino to take the victory, with Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) coming home behind them for third at the line.
Merlier's relegation moved him down to 89th on the stage, with Giovanni Lonardi (Polti-Kometa) bumped up to third, a great result for the Italian team.
The messy, headwind finish on a long 3km straight saw all sprint and GC teams involved in the final after a very easy day heading north alongside the Adriatic coast but both Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) and Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) managed to navigate the finale safely despite two 90-degree corners coming in the final 4km.
“He’s [Merlier] always tricky in the final, to predict him and how to move. It was a tricky final also with some corners and also this straight finish,” said Milan post-stage.
“It was more difficult to manage than a normal finish with some corners so in the end, I found myself on his [Merlier’s] wheel.
“I think it was a perfect wheel. He started his sprint really strong but then I tried to make mine and it went good.”
Milan was beaming with a smile in his interview, delighted with the work done in the run-in by the likes of Edward Theuns and Jasper Stuyven.
“You know it's not just this 20-second sprint that makes me happy or the victory in the end. I think it's all the work that we did, that my guys did, that the team did for me,” said Milan.
“Today supporting me, bringing me to the crucial position for the sprint. It's this that makes me happy, that makes a real team as we are. Today is just unbelievable what the guys did for me. They always believe in me and I have to say thanks from the bottom of my heart.”
The only changes in GC came due to a Cian Uijtdebroeks abandon before the stage, with Milan also extending his lead in the points classification, which he won in 2023 along with one stage.
“I think it's really special [to win in ciclamino]. Last year I was always close but made some mistakes. I think the most important thing to do is learn from these and go further,” He said. “We did that with the team and I’m proud of this.”
How it unfolded
Despite its 207km route and potential for a break to get away in the early stages, stage 11 of the Giro d’Italia started as the calmest yet in 2024. There wasn’t a furious fight when the flag was dropped outside Foiano di Val Fortore but just a three-rider move that would get away.
Thomas Champion (Cofidis), Edoardo Affini and Tim van Dijke (both Visma-Lease a Bike) were the takers when race director Stefano Allochio got the racing underway.
The latter duo granted new freedom with GC leader Cian Uijtdebroeks abandoning the race. The young Belgian was leading the best young rider’s white jersey classification while also sitting fifth overall.
But despite their freedom in the team, Affini and Van Dijke, along with their breakaway companion, were not gifted the same license to get away in the opening 50km of the 11th stage.
Nearly all of the top sprint teams, Lidl Trek, Alpecin-Deceuninck, Soudal-QuickStep and Jayco-AlUla were all on hand to keep the trio well within their reach over the next 150km.
Little action was present in likely the calmest four hours of racing at this year’s Giro so far. No attacks, the break was kept very close and all eyes were on another sprint finish alongside the Adriatic Sea.
Milan and Groves would mop up the remaining ciclamino points at the first two intermediate sprints respectively behind the breakaway but without much energy spent. Their teams would be the most active on the front of the peloton throughout the day.
The trio in front were reeled in with 35.3km to go after they were given no chance of making it, and suddenly the furious fight for position began in the bunch, with each GC team and sprint team wanting to make sure they were at the front.
A small attack from Andrea Piccolo (EF Education-EasyPost) woke up everyone 20km from the line, prompting some teams into a chase. Amid the attacking, one of Pogačar’s key mountain domestiques Felix Großschartner went down in a crash but he gingerly got back on and finished the stage.
Full focus then turned on making it to the 3km to go mark in Francavilla al Mare with it arriving dangerously after two 90-degree corners in the coastal town. This was best done by Ineos Grenadiers with Ben Swift and Magnus Sheffield doing quite the job to protect Geraint Thomas and keep him in pole position.
Ultimately the GC field all came home safe in the finale despite Pogačar not being best positioned and being forced to go the long way around some tricky road furniture.
Jayco AlUla hit the front too early in the long, straight run to the line, ultimately being swamped when Soudal-QuickStep, Lidl-Trek and Alpecin-Deceuninck moved up their fast men.
The big favourites made it out to contest the finish but a touch of wheels caused Madis Mihkels to lose control and head straight into the path of Fabio Jakobsen and Tobias Lund Andresen (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) and take them down close to the barriers as the victory was played out ahead.
Results
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