'I don't want to push the legs too much'

'I don't want to push the legs too much' - Filippo Ganna cruises to second win of season on stage 1 of Tirreno-Adriatico

Filippo Ganna cruised to victory on stage one's time trial at Tirreno-Adriatico, taking his fourth TT victory at the race on Monday.The Italian Ineos Grenadiers rider was the favourite at Lido di Camaiore, and proved worth his status.Ganna’s teammate and GC option, Thymen Arensman finished 22 seconds after, himself separated by just four seconds from Max Walscheid (Lidl-Trek).But it was the race favourite, Ganna who took first place in a show of unparalleled strength, effortlessly overtaking his minute man Alessandro Covi (Jayco AlUla) during an 11.5km time trial that he completed at an average speed of 56.2 km/h. The race looked to be won as soon as the Italian passed the intermediate split with the fastest time, smashing his teammates benchmark, arriving to the finish line to the sound of fans beating their hands on the fences. "I'm very happy," Ganna said. "I don't want to push the legs too much when my big goals of this part of the year [the Classics] are still in a few weeks time. "At the moment, I'm really happy, the shape is good," he continued. "My feelings weren't the best, but Thymen and Magnus did amazingly well, too. It was great for the team."The time trial was relatively untechnical, featuring two straight sectors linked by a U-turn at Marina di Pietrasanta. The flat-out track was interrupted by an S-bend in the final kilometre.British national champion, Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step), finished in eighth, 32 seconds off Ganna’s time. Among the other GC contenders making up the top ten were Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe), who took seventh place, while Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) laid down a more relaxed run in preparation for the upcoming road stages.As the first-stage winner, Ganna will wear the first blue jersey of the 2026 edition. The race awaiting him tomorrow is, for just over half of its 260 kilometre course, totally flat. But once the climb to Castelnuovo Val di Cecina begins, the course remains hilly until its 5.3km gravel conclusion.Of the challenge awaiting him, Ganna said: "For sure, I don't want to lose the leader's jersey, I'll fight for it and maybe try to win another stage. But it's not easy, so I'll support the team as well and see what I can do."

Results

Tirreno-Adriatico, Stage 1: Lido di Camaiore > Lido di Camaiore, 11.5km

1. Filippo Ganna (Ita), Ineos Grenadiers, in 12:08
2. Thymen Arensman (Ned), Ineos Grenadiers, +22s
3. Max Walscheid (Ger), Lidl-Trek, +26s
4. Magnus Sheffield (USA), Ineos Grenadiers, +26s
5. Jonathan Milan (Ita), Lidl-Trek, +29s
6. Alan Hatherly (RSA), Jayco AlUla, +30s
7. Primož Roglič (Slo), Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, +31s
8. Ethan Hayter (GBr), Soudal Quick-Step, +32s
9. Antonio Tiberi (Ita), Bahrain Victorious, +33s
10. Isaac del Toro (Ita), UAE Team Emirates-XRG, +36s

General classification after stage 1

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