Australian Luke Plapp (pictured) set the fastest time in the eighth stage of the Giro d'Italia. He covered the 197-kilometer distance from Giulianova to Castelraimondo in 4 hours, 44 minutes and 20 seconds, BTA reports.
The 24-year-old Plapp, who rides for Jaico Alula's team, was part of a breakaway. He attacked 45 kilometers before the finish and took victory. As experts predicted, the stage turned out to be very convenient for winning after a breakaway, as such a conclusion had not been seen since the beginning of the race.
Second, 38 seconds behind, was Dutchman Wicklo Kelderman from Visma Liège on a bike, and third, with the same time, was Italian Diego Ulisi from Astana. However, he was also the big winner of the stage, as he took the lead in the general classification.
The main group arrived nearly five minutes behind the winner. With a final sprint, second in the standings Juan Ayuso (Spain/UAE) managed to take a one-second lead over Primož Roglic (Slovenia/Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), who was wearing the "pink jersey", thus reducing the gap between the two to three seconds.
In the general classification, Ulisi led with a lead of 12 seconds over his compatriot and teammate Lorenzo Fortunato. Roglic is third at 17 seconds, and Ayuso is fourth at 20 seconds. Mexican Isaac del Toro, also from the UAE team, is fifth at 26 seconds.
On Sunday, the participants in the Giro d'Italia face their second consecutive hilly stage. It is 181 kilometers long from Gubbio to Siena, and will include a significant number of kilometers on dirt roads.