
For a few moments on stage 17 of the Giro d'Italia, it looked like Romain Bardet might be on his way to the result he and much of the cycling world have been dreaming of: a stage victory in his final ever Grand Tour.
The Frenchman had made it into the day's early breakaway, looking like one of the strongest on the Passo del Tonale and the Passo del Mortirolo, always holding firm in the lead group even as others fell away.