Jenthe Biermans claims his firt GT-stage top 5
1st sprint finish in the Giro d’Italia, and 4th place for Jenthe Biermans.
‘4th is very good, especially given the field of sprinters in this 107th edition of the Giro d’Italia. It was very ‘hot’ at one point with this breakaway of twenty-five riders, most of them sprinters, but I stayed calm in the peloton. David was at the front and that was good for us. Then I was happy that the peloton caught up with the breakaway, and once in the final sprint, Alan Riou and David Dekker placed me perfectly. But I’d like to thank the whole ARKEA-B&B HOTELS team for the work they did for me. The last climb was hard, but I had very good legs today, and that’s how it’s been since the start of this Giro d’Italia. A rider like me doesn’t have many chances in his favour at this Giro d’Italia, so I’m happy to finish fourth straight away. It’s good for me, of course, but also for the ARKEA-B&B HOTELS team, and the confidence given to the whole team here in Italy’.
‘It was a stage that demanded vigilance, even if on paper it looked “quiet”, with a bunch sprint envisaged at the finish. But there was some movement, with a breakaway of twenty-five riders, most of them sprinters, who set off in an intermediate sprint. We had David Dekker in this group. We had opted for Jenthe because of the difficulty of the final in Fossano. He managed it perfectly, taking the right wheels as he knows how. Jenthe is in very good physical condition and he showed that by finishing fourth. He was able to pick up speed and find his second wind after the last climb before the finish, something that some sprinters have not been able to do. That’s why Jenthe was our card today’.