Arnaud Démare (Groupama-FDJ) won the 5th stage of the Tour of Italy in the sprint, this Wednesday in Messina, the first French success since the start. He also grabs the cyclamen jersey for best sprinter. Arnaud Démare beat the Colombian Fernando Gaviria and the Italian Giacomo Nizzolo at the end of this transition stage, for the second Sicilian day of the event.
The Spaniard Juan Pedro Lopez remained at the controls of the Giro after this 174 kilometer stage with a climb in the first half of the course. Several sprinters were left behind on this climb. If Arnaud Démare was able to pick up at the bottom of the descent, 75 kilometers from the finish, the Australian Caleb Ewan and the Briton Mark Cavendish could not return to the main peloton.
At 30, the Picard won for the first time this year. He now has 85 victories to his name, including six stages of the Giro after a success in 2019 and four in 2020 (in addition to the cyclamen jersey in the points classification). “The climb was difficult, we expected it,” explained the Frenchman. “I lost quite a bit of time but the guys (in the team) did a great job of coming back downhill. We quickly regained the lead afterwards to maintain the gap.” “We know what we are capable of,” added the former French champion.
“In cycling, it’s sometimes difficult to put things in place but you have to know how to persevere.” Démare, who came second behind Cavendish in the 3rd stage of the Giro on Sunday at Lake Balaton, Hungary, takes the cyclamen jersey in the points classification. On Thursday, the race moves to the mainland and covers 192 kilometers in Calabria between Palmi and Scalea, on a flat road after the first 50 kilometers and favorable to sprinters.