Lukas Postlberger sprints to surprise win on first stage of Giro d’Italia
Giro d’Italia 2017
Stage 1
Lukas Postlberger upset the odds to take victory on the opening stage of the 100th Giro d’Italia in Olbia.
A bunch sprint had been expected at the end of the 206-km stage from Alghero and Postlberger went to the front of the peloton with two kilometres left to start the lead-out for his Bora-Hansgrohe team-mate Sam Bennett of Ireland.
But he saw a gap open up behind him and pushed on to take his first World Tour victory – and the famous pink jersey – much to the Austrian’s own disbelief.
Behind, the big-name sprinters Caleb Ewan (Orica-Scott) and André Greipel (Lotto-Soudal) were left to settle for second and third respectively while Bennett was 10th.
Coupled with the climber’s blue jersey for his team-mate Cesare Benedetti, part of the day’s breakaway, it was a glorious day for Bora-Hansgrohe, who hold all four jerseys at the end of the first stage.
![](https://i0.wp.com/www.markingthespot.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/pink.jpg?resize=800%2C450)
The overall contenders Nairo Quintana of Movistar and Geraint Thomas of Team Sky finished safely in the pack despite the disruption caused by a late crash, which was just outside the 3km cut-off point which guarantees riders will not lose time because of an incident.
However, not everyone was so lucky as some riders conceded more than a minute in the late confusion, with LottoNL-Jumbo’s general classification hopeful Steven Kruijswijk giving up 13 seconds.
With time bonuses applied, Postlberger leads the race by four seconds from Ewan.
“It’s a surprise,” Postlberger said. “I knew my shape was good. We wanted to try to lead Sam Bennett out but he lost my wheel and, when I saw a gap, I decided to try myself.
“I gave all I had. It worked out. This is my first professional win and I get the maglia rosa. It will take me a long time to believe this.”
Stage one result:
1. Lukas Postlberger (Bora-Hansgrohe) 5hrs 13mins 35secs
2. Caleb Ewan (Orica-Scott) Same time
3. Andre Greipel (Lotto-Soudal) Same time
4. Giacomo Nizzolo (Trek-Segafredo) Same time
5. Sacha Modolo (UAE Team Emirates) Same time
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