Tadej Pogačar upbeat despite narrow defeat in opening Giro d’Italia stage

Tadej Pogačar may not have seized the pink jersey on the first day of the 2024 Giro d’Italia, but the number-one GC favourite nonetheless still managed to make a significant statement of intent with a searing late attack and third place behind stage winner Jhonathan Narváez (Ineos Grenadiers) and runner-up Max Schachmann (Bora-Hansgrohe).

As widely predicted, the organisers’ decision this spring to insert the steep, unclassified ascent of the Bivio di San Vito into stage 1 proved critical in Pogačar’s master plan, as the Slovenian star blasted off from the foot of the climb and was all but clear by the summit.