2021 Giro d'Italia Stage 11 Results & Recap
Stage 11 of the 2021 Giro d'Italia is in the books. The final results and standings are below, followed by our recap of how the race unfolded.
Race Recap
Schmid wins 'Strade Bianche" stage
Mauro Schmid (Team Qhubeka Assos) took victory on stage 11 of the Giro d'Italia after winning a two-up sprint against Alessandro Covi (UAE Team Emirates) in Montalcino. Harm Vanhoucke (Lotto Soudal) claimed third on the day, 26 seconds down after an exciting stage through the rolling Tuscan hills.
I can’t believe it, it’s my first international win and I would never have expected it to be at a grand tour. I was not even expecting to do a Grand Tour this year, but the team believed in me and I got the chance to do the Giro. It’s an amazing race and it means a lot to me," Schmid said in a team's release. "I started with mountain bike racing when I was younger, and cyclocross and now I also do track. I will go to the Olympics this year. The technical skills from cycle cross and the power from the track have helped me to develop as a rider."
Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) campaign for the Trofeo Senza Fine is going as planned. The Colombian put in a vicious attack on his GC rivals during the final gravel sector and never looked back. Bernal is now 45 seconds ahead of Aleksandr Vlasov (Astana - Premier Tech) after Remco Evenepoel (Deceuninck - Quick-Step) faltered on the white roads of Tuscany, and lost more than two minutes on GC. Evenepoel sits in seventh place. Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious) is third, at 1'12".
"I liked it a lot. I enjoyed myself on the gravel," Bernal said. "The most complicated part was mentally because you know that if you make a wrong movement you might fall or puncture, but in the end, it was about finding that balance. You had to avoid crashes or punctures, but to be in front, you have to take risks."
"I think there are a lot of rivals. I never thought there was just one rider," Bernal continued when asked about his competitors. "I have a lot of respect for the other riders: there's Yates, there's Carthy, there's Vlasov, there's Caruso. There are a lot of riders. There was [Mikel] Landa before, too," Bernal said. "For me, there are a lot of riders at this point, not just Vlasov. I gained a few seconds today, but we all know how hard the Giro is and how hard the last 10 stages will be. I'm keeping my feet on the ground. We know we're going well but we'll continue to have respect for all our rivals."
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