Wiggle High5 Pro Cycling’s Chloe Hosking took her first ever victory in the Giro d’Italia Femminile, as the peloton finished the third stage, between Montagnana and Lendinara, in a bunch sprint. The Australian burst away from the pack as it rounded the final sweeping corner with 300 metres to go, and finished more than a length clear of the race for second place. Marta Tagliaferro (Alé-Cipollini) finished just ahead of Wiggle High5 Pro Cycling’s stage one winner Giorgia Bronzini in the battle for the podium positions.
“That was very, very amazing!” Hosking exclaimed. “I felt really good today, and it’s not every day you get an opportunity to win a stage of the Giro, so I wanted to make the most of it! I had my [Lazer] Aeroshell on; I had my booties on; I had a number of caffeine High5 gels; leading into the finish I was just really focused.
“Gio spoke to me in the car yesterday, and asked me what I wanted to do today. I wanted to sprint, but I’m also mindful that Olympic qualification is still up for grabs for the Italians, so I told her that I didn’t want to take an opportunity away from her if it’s going to affect her Rio selection. But we spoke in the race, and she said ‘Chloe we go for you;’ and I said ‘okay,’ I wasn’t going to say no!
“I’m so happy that the sprint ended up just how I wanted it to, and I won convincingly, which is a huge confidence boost leading into the second half of the season.”
Today’s victory is Hosking’s second in the Women’s WorldTour this year, after the Australian took a stage and the general classification at the Tour of Chongming Island in May. This year has also seen the Australian sprinter take a stage of the Tour of Qatar, where the World Championships will be held in October, and this stage was reminiscent of that.
“It was a really sweeping corner that sort of turned back on itself,” Hosking explained. “You didn’t really have to brake. I was surfing [sprint] trains; first the Rabo train, and then the Canyon train. I knew the Canyon train was very strong, and they were going full-gas for Barbara [Guarischi], so I just committed. I stayed on her wheel, stayed on her wheel, and then going round the last corner it was just Tiff Cromwell, Barbara and me.
“I came through the corner, and I was still there,” Hosking continued. “We had Alex [Greenfield], our logistics manager, ride the course before we arrived, so we got the info over the radio about the finish. I knew it was a tailwind sprint, so I just decided that I was going to go early and catch them off guard, and it worked!
“Other than the corner with about 300 metres to go, it was very similar to my win in Qatar. I felt really powerful and Gio, who was behind me, said that when I kicked they couldn’t follow. So it’s a good feeling, especially as I’m still building up for the World Championships. I’m really here to help the team and improve my form for the rest of the season.”
The mostly flat 118km stage was relatively uneventful, with Wiggle High5 Pro Cycling’s Elisa Longo Borghini first across the line over the one classified climb at Arquà Petrarca, to take the outright lead in the Green Jersey Classification. There were some attempted breakaways in the closing kilometres, but the black and orange team – along with the other strong teams that wanted to set up their own sprinters – ensured that the peloton arrived at the finish together.
“It’s a great feeling, and to have the team support is amazing,” Hosking concluded. “As I said: it’s not every day you get to win a Giro stage!”
Result
1. Chloe Hosking (Wiggle High5 Pro Cycling)
2. Marta Tagliaferro (Alé-Cipollini)
3. Giorgia Bronzini (Wiggle High5 Pro Cycling)
