With Albanian victory Mads Pedersen pulls on the first Giro d’Italia pink jersey
Derek Gee has a poor start, Landa crashes out
His Lidl-Trek squad having ruled the day, Mads Pedersen claimed Friday’s first maglia rosa of the 108th Giro d’Italia after Stage 1 victory in Albania’s capital, Tirana. Pedersen, who claimed his consecutive Gent-Wevelgem in Flanders Fields in late March, is the first Dane to wear pink. Derek Gee was dropped on the last climb of the day, a 6.9-km, 4.5 percent Cat. 3 ascent, losing almost a minute.
The Course
Friday was the first of three stages in Albania. Starting in Tirana, the peloton would meet Gracen, the first categorized climb of the 2025 Giro, at the 72 km mark, with two intermediate sprints on the way. The first bonus sprint was between Gracen and the first of two ascents of Cat. 3 Surrel. With 22 km to go, the riders would cross the finish line and then head up Surrel again, its peak 11 km from the finish line.
After a couple of attempts, the day’s breakaway scampered away. It wasn’t allowed a long leash. Fugitive Alessandro Tonelli won the first intermediate sprint in Papër and Manuele Tarozzi took the one in Elbasan.
At the foot of the Cat. 2 Gracen, one of the GC favourites, Juan Ayuso, crashed on a right-hand curve.
Belgian escapee Sylvain Moniquet was first over the Cat. 2 and would wear the mountains jersey at the end of the day. On the first passage of Surrel, the breakaway was reabsorbed. Several riders were dropped. Lidl-Trek grabbed the reins, leading over the first passage of the finish line and onto Surrel II where the field got thinner.
Just at the end of the climb Wout van Aert sifted to the tail of the group. Gee couldn’t hang on and GC aspirant Thymen Arensman fell away as well. On the descent Mikel Landa and three others crashed. Sadly, Landa was taken to hospital in an ambulance.
Primož Roglič’s Red Bull led into the final 2 km, van Aert on the wheel of Roglič. Under the red kite the riders were spread out all over the road. Pedersen’s lead-out man pulled off and the Dane hugged the right hand barrier. Van Aert almost pipped him at the line.
Saturday is the shorter of the two time trials in the 108th edition, 13.7 km around Tirana.
2025 Giro d’Italia Stage 1
1) Mads Pedersen (Denmark/Lidl-Trek) 3:36:24
2) Wout van Aert (Belgium/Visma-Lease a Bike) s.t.
3) Orluis Aular (Venezuela/Movistar) s.t.