In the 11th edition of the Italian classic, the pace was constantly high from the start. Team Visma | Lease a Bike was well represented in the front group with Eva van Agt, Fem van Empel, Femke de Vries and Ferrand-Prévot. With forty kilometres to go, Ferrand-Prévot saw her chance and responded to an attack by Mavi Garcia.

The seven leaders grabbed a minute's lead in no time, but the chasers did not give in. Led by Vollering and Anna van der Breggen, the two groups came together and on the final gravel strip, the two Dutch riders rode away from the rest. In the battle for third place, Ferrand-Prévot pulled ahead thanks to a powerful sprint.

"This is a great start to the season", Ferrand-Prévot said. "I felt good today and the team did a great job keeping me at the front all the time. When Mavi Garcia accelerated, it seemed like a good time for me to go with her. My goal was to start the last climb with a lead, but unfortunately the group behind closed the gap."

On the final climb, Ferrand-Prévot could not keep up with her competitors. "I was at my limit and when I saw the gap getting bigger, I focused on third place. I gave everything I had and won the sprint. I'm happy I could manage that." According to the Olympic mountain bike champion, this performance gives a lot of confidence for the rest of the season. "Now that I know I can compete with the best, I will go to the next races with a good feeling."