First stage win

Alaphilippe celebrates solo victory in 12th Giro stage

French professional cyclist Julian Alaphilippe has won the 12th stage of the Giro d'Italia with an impressive escape to the front. The two-time world champion from Team Soudal Quick-Step rode solo across the finish line on Thursday after 193 km from Martinsicuro to Fano following a breakaway of almost 140 km, thus celebrating his first stage win in the Tour of Italy. The Slovenian Tadej Pogacar defended his pink jersey without any problems.

"It was my dream to win a stage at the Giro and I'm very happy. I didn't plan it like this," said Alaphilippe about his triumph. After six stage wins at the Tour de France and a stage win at the Vuelta, the 31-year-old was able to celebrate at the Giro for the first time. For Alaphilippe, it was his first victory in 346 days and a successful comeback. In the winter, he had even been attacked by his own team boss Patrick Lefevere, who had accused him of "too much partying, too much alcohol" in the past.

Almost 40 riders had broken away from the peloton on the hilly section. Alaphilippe decided to try his luck together with the Italian Mirco Maestri (Polti Kometa) around 125 km before the finish. The duo maintained a constant lead of more than a minute over the chasing group and the peloton, with Alaphilippe decisively overtaking his escape companion on the final climb with around 11.5 km to go.

Chasers far behind
Behind them, a nine-man chasing group formed, but was unable to catch up with the leaders. Jhonatan Narvaez (Ineos) from Ecuador came in second, 31 seconds behind, with Maestri finishing in ninth place (+1:30 min.). The favorites in the overall standings crossed the finish line more than five minutes behind after the larger chasing group had been caught.

On Friday, the sprinters can hope for the fifth mass arrival of this year's Giro. The 13th stage over 179 km from Riccione to Cento runs over completely flat terrain. The second individual time trial and another mountain finish are then on the program for the weekend.