The second stage was very similar to the one from the day before. Another largely flat route concluded with a bunch sprint in the coastal town of Caorle. The biggest difference in northeastern Italy was that Team Visma | Lease a Bike did get involved at the front during the final kilometers this time around. On Sunday afternoon, the Dutch squad put its faith in Veenhoven.

The 22-year-old rider was delivered to the front by teammate Margaux Vigié and eventually sprinted to ninth place behind Balsamo. “It went a lot better than yesterday. We came through the climb halfway through the stage well, and after that it was just about staying calm. The sprint didn’t go exactly as planned, but for now I’m satisfied. The next opportunity we get, we need to grab with both hands and fight for the podium”, a determined Veenhoven says afterward.

Sports director Joppe de Heij also noticed that his sprinter looked much stronger than on Saturday. “I wouldn’t have expected this yesterday. We actually did a really good job today. Margaux put Nienke into a good position and she was able to sprint. During the stage, she had been at the car a few times, and her signals gave us good hope for the final. I’m very happy about that.”

Tomorrow’s third stage features two climbs. De Heij: “It will probably be too difficult to  sprint tomorrow. For us, the goal is to come through the day well and avoid losing time with the general classification in mind. That will be important for Tuesday.” The sports director is referring to the twelve-kilometer time trial, which finishes on the climb to Nevegal (7.4 km at 8.2%).