Giro d’Italia stage 2 LIVE: Vingegaard attacks on final climb

That trio is a few seconds ahead of the main chase group.

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Vingegaard has just 2 riders with him – Giulio Pellizzari and Lenny Van Eetvelt.

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There are gaps behind, with Bernal, O’Connor and Mas all adrift.

He’s attacked and got a gap!

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Vingegaard movrs to the front! He’s upping the pace on the steeper section.

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Gee was not dropped on the climb, but rather never made his way back after the crash. He’s trying to rejoin the peloton on the climb.

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Magnier is dropped – we will have a new pink jersey!

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It’s still a big peloton, buy all stretched out single file by Visma’s work.

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Narváez and Gee are both dropped on the climb, having gone down in the crash.

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Visma take control at the front.

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Morgado has been dropped, despite being tipped as a contender for the stage.

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Astana lead the peloton onto the climb, with Scaroni.

Vine has abandoned the race as a result of the crash.

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And now the race is on for positions onto the final climb, which is imminent.

Bernal sprints for it, and takes 6 seconds!

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The race is on again, and there are bonus seconds on offer at the Red Bull Kilometre.

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The race did not wait for all the dropped riders to return before restarting. Strong still had some ground to make up, and no sign of where Yates is.

With 18km to go, the race is back on.

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Andrea Vendrame is also still not on his bike after being checked out by the medics, but looks set to continue.

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Adne Holter is still waiting to get back on his bike, sat up on the floor.

The race has been neutralised, with the official car moving to the front of the peloton.

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Cavagna looked in a bad way, but is now back on his bike and riding.

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About 20 riders must have been held up in that crash.

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Adam Yates is trying to get back ono his bike. He’s covered in mud, having gone into the ditch.

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Most are up on their feet, but some gingerly so.

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Morgado and Adam Yates also involved.

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buitrago, Gee-West and Strong among those inolved.

Lots of riders down in a crash.

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The pace is relly up now, with a rainbow of different coloured jerseys lined across the front.

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More rain jackets are being discarded. Gall is getting some help from Decathlon teammate Naesen with his.

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That’s it, Maestri and Sevilla’s day out front is over, having spent almost 200km and five hours leading the race. Chapeau!

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Ineos lead the peloton, as they are about to make the catch.

Sevilla and Maestri’s days are numbered. They’re lead has been cut to just 30 seconds.

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The battle for position in the peloton is on! Visma, Ineos and UAE are all formed into long lines towards the front.

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Things are heating up – some of the jackets that were being put on are now coming off again. This race is going to ignite soon.

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Ryan Mullen is practically the only rider visible at the front of the peloton who is not wearing a rain jacket.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

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Not only is it wet out there, it’s also cold. Magnier’s pink jersey isn’t keeping him warm enough, and shaking his arms to try and warm up.

The gap’s come down a little, to 1:45. The break’s chances of surviving are very slim.

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Mechanical for Sepp Kuss. He’ll have no problem making his way back to the peloton while the pace is this slow, though his job will be solely looking after Vingegaard, with no intention of looking after his own GC position as a ‘plan b’ option.

We’re into the final quarter of what’s been a long, slow stage! The break are still holding a lead of two minutes.

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

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One rider who isn’t wearing a coat is Ryan Mullen. He’s offered one by his teammate, but declines it with some expressive gestures.

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The weather has turned pretty nasty out there.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Two minutes for Sevilla and Maestri, with about 45km until the all-important final climb.

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Magnier is the latest rider to drop back and pick up a gilet – a very conspicuous pink one.

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The weather’s taking a turn for the worse, with rain falling! Enric Mas is among those dropping back to put on a gilet.

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A rider in a similar mould to Ciccone is Santiago Buitrago. He won’t be overly feared by the GC candidates, and therefore might be given more leeway to attack, and is in possession of an explosive uphill acceleration. The Colombian already has two Giro stage wins to his name, but none since 2023.

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If the final climb is too hard for a rider like Ganna, who could it suit? Giulio Ciccone is a name mentioned by a few team staff at the start of the day as a rider they’re keeping a watch on. The Italian has one of the strongest punches of any of the climbers competing, and rather than target GC, is expected to go for stage wins – and possibly, if he’s feeling good having not brought his best form in the run-in to the Giro, on stages like today’s.

2:15 is the gap. The peloron might be going slowly, but so too are the two leaders.

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And now Ryan Mullen is back at the front! He was dropped on the climb but has made his way back, and is once again being relied on to set the tempo. On what’s been an easy day for pretty much everyone else, he’s doing one hell of a shift.

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NSN have taken control of the peloton again, with Jake Stewart.

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De Lie has made his way back to the peloton – luckily for him the atmosphere in the peloton is back to being very subdued.

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

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Ganna is the kind of rider with a powerful punch that could potentially go for an attack on the final climb – but will it just be a little too steep for him? Its average gradient of 6.6% for 4km is tougher than, say, the Poggio climb he has enjoyed such success at in the past.

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Ben Turner is another rider with a fast finishing kick who can also haul himself up a punchy effort like today’s climb. But will Ineos prioritise setting him up, looking after their GC riders, or potentially riding for another candidate in Filippo Ganna?

The peloton has brought the two leaders much closer, to just 2:18. Meanwhile De Lie has 1:10 to make up if he’s to return to the peloton.

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

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In the peloton, Visma take control on the descent.

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De Lie is struggling a lot. He’s all on his own, spinning a low gear, and crests the climb about a minute after the peloton.

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Groenewegen has also gone, but should be able to get back on, as they’re just about to reach the top.

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Some riders are being dropped out of the peloton as the pace increases. Sprinter De Lie is one of them.

Sevilla takes the points again as the leading pair go over the top.

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In recent years, reduced bunch sprints at Grand Tours has been a speciality of Kaden Groves, who already has two career Giro stage victories to his name. The big question is how well he has recovered from yesterday’s stage, when he was involved in the crash.

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Such a mellow day could play into the hands of the sprinters, who might be more fresh than they would otherwise have been come the finale, and therefore stand a better chance of surviving the last climb. But which sprinters should we be looking out for?

NSN clearly have the belief that they can control things for Corbin Strong.

The pace in the peloton is slow enough for the breakaway pair to increase their lead to 3:30.

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This climb is being taken on at a mellow pace too, so it appears the determining factor set to decide the fate of this stage will be the final climb.

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Mullen has reinforcements at the front of the peloton, with multiple riders from his NSN team helping him set the pace as they ride up the climb.

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That was only a short descent. The riders are going gently uphill once again, approaching the official start of the Vratnik Pass, which lasts 9.1km at 4.1%.

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

The increase in pace on that climb has seen the break’s lead to come down to three minutes. The peloton aren’t going hard on the descent though, and the road looks pretty dry.

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Visma lead the peloton as they begin the descent.

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The peloton crest the climb, three minutes after the leaders.

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It’s a bit livelier in the peloton now. Teams want to be well-positioned for this descent, especially now the roads are getting wet.

Maestri doesn’t challenge Sevilla for the points at the top of the climb, so he increases his leader in the KOM rankings.

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No more urgency has been shown by the peloton on this climb, where the pace remains slow. This isn’t the kind of all-action racing we’ve grown accustomed to at recent Grand Tours.

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It’s started to drizzle a little.

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

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It’s a bit nippy out there – those yellow Visma jerseys have all been covered in black outerlayers.

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Mullen continues to pull the peloton.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

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Having been climbing for several kilometres, the riders have now officially begun the Byala pass. They will spend the next 7.7km riding at a 4.6% gradient.

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Here’s the updated points classification standings:

1 Magnier 55 points

The gap’s come down a little more, to 4:45.

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With the intermediate sprint coming up, we’re anticipating Milan coming up to the front to try and gain some more points.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

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Adam Yates has just had a chat with his team car. Though he’s UAE’s GC man for the race, they have the kind of line-up that could excel hunting stage wins, including today’s – but with who? At his best Jhonatan Narváez looks like a great candidate, though his form is unproven following an injury-disrupted start to the season.

Perhaps Morgado, who showed intent in chasing bonus seconds yesterday, has today in mind – with a potential pink jersey on the cards having picked up that time.

5:15 is the gap. Mullen continues to lead, but is clearly not out of breath – he’s having a chat with Victor Campanaerts, who, given his interest in the topic, may or may not be giving him some tips about riding aero.

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This is a different approach from the one Visma took in the finale of yesterday’s stage, when they stayed towards the back of the peloton – vindicated when they managed to avoid the late crash at the front.

The gaps dipped below five minutes, to 4:55, but the pace remains very calm for now.

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Marcel Kittel is on the roadside handing out a bidon to the Unibet Rose Rockets riders. He seems to be enjoying life back in the cycling world, working as a coach for Groenewegen’s team.

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Can Paul Magnier stay in the pink jersey? Although the final climb will be difficult for him, he said yesterday that ‘maybe a chance that I can survive if I feel good’

The race remains in the same holding pattern, with the Ryan Mullen-led peloton 5:07 behind the two leaders.

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Though NSN clearly believes in Strong’s chances in a sprint, this stage is difficult to call. It could be that a reduced peloton makes it to the finish together for a sprint contested by the sprinters capable of making it over the climbs, it could also be that puncheurs succeed in breaking clear from the peloton on the final climb – and perhaps even GC contenders could get involved.

5:20 is the gap between the break and the peloton, on what remains a sleepy stage at the Giro d’Italia.

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Still 5:15 between break and peloton

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NSN continue at the head of the peloton

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A new bike for Jonas Vingegaard after the Dane suffers a mechanical issue

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No change in the race situation after the first hour on the road