The 109th edition of the Giro d'Italia got underway on Bulgarian soil. The Grande Partenza took place in Nessebar. The peloton set off on a flat 147-kilometer route toward the finish in Burgas. Throughout the stage, a two-man breakaway featuring Manuele Tarozzi and Diego Sevilla was controlled by the sprint teams. Their duo-attack came to an end just over twenty kilometers from the finish line.  

What followed was a tense run-in to the first bunch sprint of this Giro. The riders of Team Visma | Lease a Bike chose not to get involved in the chaos at the front of the peloton. In the final kilometer, the peloton was shaken by a heavy crash that forced nearly everyone to stop riding. About ten riders then sprinted for victory, with Magnier proving to be the fastest. All Team Visma | Lease a Bike riders crossed the finish line safely.  

Sports director Marc Reef looked back on the stage: “The most important thing for us today was reaching the finish safely. The guys made it into the final five kilometers without any issues, so there was no longer any risk of losing time. There is always a lot at stake in the opening stage of a Grand Tour. Things went seriously wrong in the final kilometer. We decided to stay in the background during the finale.”  

“Tomorrow’s stage has a difficult finish with several technical sections. There are many riders who can dream of victory. For us, the main thing remains getting through the first three days in Bulgaria as well as possible,” Reef concluded.