Live coverage

Giro d'Italia 2017: Stage 11

By stephenfarrand
published

January 1 - May 28, Firenze, Italy, Road - WorldTour

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Welcome to live coverage of the Giro d'Italia stage 11, a hilly 161km stage from Florence to Bagno di Romagna.

Giro d'Italia hub page

Buongiorno and welcome to full live coverage of today's stage.

After yesterday's time trial in Umbria, the Giro d'Italia has been turned upside down yet again.

However Dumoulin and his teammates face an immediate trst of their GC credentials today.

Many riders are wraming up on the rollers before heading to the sign-on, to ensure they are ready for the fast start, the early climb of the Passo della Consuma. 

Here is a first image of Tom Dumoulin in the pink jersey.

Dumoulin is now in Piazza Michelangelo but he will have little time ot enjoy the view acorss the Renaissance city like most tourist do.

Other riders are signing on, with Vincenzo Nibali getting a loud cheer. He spent much of his amateur career in Tuscany and the Squalo fans club are out inforce today.

Italian national Giacomo Nizzolo (Trek-Segafredo) has confirmed that he will not start the stage.

It was a difficult decision to quit, just as the first part of the Giro was difficult for me," Nizzolo said at the Trek-Segafredo team bus before heading home.

Mark Cavendish is not riding the Giro d'Italia but visited the race during a training ride from his base in nearby Quarrata. 

Today's stage celebrates Gino Bartali - the legendary Tuscan rider. He won the Tour de France in 1938 and in 1948 after the second World War.

The riders have now signed on and began the 6.1km neutralised sector to the official start in Ponte a Ema.

Tom Dumoulin enjoyed a moment in the shade before the roll out.

Temperatures of around 28C are expected today but there is also a slight risk of rain showers which could make the stage and the descents extra dififcult. 

The riders are approaching Ponte a Ema now. After a brief pause to remember Gino Bartali, the flag will drop and we can expect the first attacks.

This is the stage the riders face today. It includes close to 4000m of climbing in just 161km.

This is the view from the Bartali museum in Ponte a Ema.

The stage is now underway. We're waiting to see who are he first attackers.

Four riders tried an attack but the peloton has pulled them back.

To read more about Gino Bartali and his rivalry with Fausto Coppi, click here for our special feature from the Cyclingnews archive. 

Dumoulin spoke briefly at the start and quickly played down any comparisons to Miguel Indurain before the start, preferring to be himself and stay focused on today’s stage.

As the Passo dello Consuma gets serious, the Movistar team is leading the peloton.

The speed Movistar is setting is shaking out the peloton. Numerous riders have been dropped, including Fernando Gaviria.

138km remaining from 161km

Rui Costa is in the move but his presence seems to have scared the peloton. 

Mikel Landa of Team Sky is also there. 

Other riders are trying to get across the gap but the peloton is chasing them down.

We're hearing that Nathan Haas (Dimension Data) has abandoned the stage. 

The Costa attack has been swept up by what is left of the peloton.

There are 40 or so riders left in the peloton.

Costa goes again but few riders are willing to work with him.

The peloton is lined out as riders react to attacks.

Phil Deginan is in the latest surge off the front.

Rolland is there for Cannondale-Drapac.

Laurens de Plus of Quick-Step is active and dragging another move clear.

The peloton is even smaller now. The race has exploded on the first climb of the stage!

Igot Anton (Dimension Data) has joined De Plus.

130km remaining from 161km

It will be fascinating to see who is in the chase group and which team leaders have teammates with them. 

21 year-old De Plus is first over the summit and takes maximum points.

They now face a long, twisting descent to Stia and the foot of the second of the four big climbs of the stage.

125km remaining from 161km

Anton and De Plus lead by 2:0 but they have been jonied by 23 chasers to create a strong move up front.

The 25 group includes three riders from Movistar. It seems that Quintana wants riders up the road for  possible attack later. 

All the teams bar two Italian squads Bardiani-CSF and Wilier Triestina have riders in the move.

Behind the Sunweb team is leading the chase with two riders helping Dumoulin.

At the intermediate sprint Igot Anton takes the points, the cash and the bonus seconds.

Simon Geschke and Georg Preidler are leading the peloton for Dumoulin.

The climb of the Passo della Calla begins and Landa immediately ups the pace.

Landa has gone clear with Omar Fraile of Dimension Data.

Vincenzo Nibali was happy with his ride in the time trial but is keeping his cards close to his chest for today’s stage. He’s currently in the main peloton but has fellow Sicilian in the 25-rider attack to help him later if needed.

Geraint Thomas has stayed hidden in the peloton for now. He admitted that his injuries were creating more problems today after his strong ride in the time trial.

Climbing the Passo della Calla  and the two leaders have pushed their advantage out to 3'42. There's a bit of a lull in the peloton as Dumoulin's team recover from the erratic start and gain some level of control.

Both Landa and Fraile are well down on GC so no threat to Dumoulin but the intent from both Dimension Data and Team Sky is clear. They want the stage and Sky also want to ruffle some feathers in the race for the maglia rosa. 

The chase group, and we're still trying to gather all the names, are at 1'39. The group contains Amador and he's in the top ten. As things stand he's up to second on GC. So Dumoulin has to make sure his team chase this move down. One could argue that the Dutch rider has brought this onslaught on himself after such a dominant TT. Movistar have now got to be super aggressive. 

Here are the 25 riders in the chase group:

102km remaining from 161km

Up front and Landa wipes the sweat from his brow as he continues setting the pace in the lead group. He's wearing down Sunweb with these tactics. 

There's still a long way to go in the stage but already we've seen fireworks. The two leaders know the score and they're sharing the pace as the gradient eases slightly and allows them to remain on the big ring for a while longer. Landa moves out the saddle as he keeps the pace high the gaps holds at over four minutes.

The Anacona group have put a few more seconds into the bunch, despite lacking complete cohesion. There are certainly a few passengers in the second group. 

Three kilometres from the top of the climb for the two leaders as they move their lead out to Dumoulin to 4'30. This will be of little concern at the moment for the maglia rosa. His first concern will be the Anacona group that 1'58.

98km remaining from 161km

Now Fraile takes over as we see the rest of the Movistar team gather around Dumoulin in the bunch. The pressure is certainly on the maglia rosa as the Spanish team test his mettle. 

Just 1km until we reach the summit. The gap between the two leaders and pink is 4'36. It's a long, long descent we reach the next climb.

Dumoulin still has four men with him but he'll be thinking of Kelderman who crashed out two stages ago. That was a huge blow for the current race leader as the gap moves out to 4'49.

Fraile takes maximum points at the top as Landa settles for second. He had no interest in the KOM. He wants the stage. He wants to cause havoc.

Crash. Pellizotti is down. Another ride from BMC is also down on the ground as the peloton tackle this long and technical descent. 

And there's an argument between two Movistar riders as they stand by the side of the road. Tensions are so, so high today.

89km remaining from 161km

Over two hours of racing now as the entire race are descending. Dumoulin still has a lot of work to do with two major climbs to come. Movistar and Team Sky have been probing away all day and it's a case of following the right moves for the Dutchman. So far he's handled the pressure well enough but the onus is on his team. 

The two leaders now have 5'20 on the Dumoulin group. The gap is getting bigger with each corner as we continue to descend. 

82km remaining from 161km

A reminder of the riders in the second break. They have 2'51 on the maglia rosa. Sunweb are getting closer to a critical point in today's stage.

Dumoulin has lost a teammate, so he's down to three guys to help him. It doesn't look like other teams will commit, even though Anacona is moving up the standings. 

The bunch have brought back the two groups by a handful of seconds as we head towards the final 70km of racing. 

Dumoulin has been joined by another teammate so he's back with four men on the front of the bunch as Cataldo hits the front for the second group and turns on the gas.

Landa and Fraile are climbing again as the second group try and find a bit of impetus. They need to organise their pace setting duties if they're to put Dumoulin under pressure and stand any chance of deciding the stage.

Montaguti has now attacked from the chase group with 67km to go. That's a big ask if the plan is to catch the two leaders on his own but it shows the lack of cooperation in the second group. 

Three. Dumoulin has lost one teammate as soon as the road starts to climb again. Quintana must be looking at this as an opportunity to attack. Perhaps not on this climb, but certainly the next one as we see Montaguti being brought back by the rest of the riders in the second group. 

There's a real lack of cohesion in the second group as Anacona takes it upon himself to lift the pace. He really needs to move clear and take a handful of committed riders with him if he and Movistar are to really test Sunweb in the second half of this stage. 

And it's Movistar who attack from the second group with one rider trying to go clear. All that does is stretch out the group.

62km remaining from 161km

Dumoulin look relatively comfortable as he takes food from his back pocket. He has the Landa group at under five minutes now as we head towards the summit on the penultimate climb. 

The three Movistar riders are perhaps waiting for the next climb, the second category ascent, before they blitz from the second group and force Sunweb's hand.

Close to the summit of the Passo del Carnaio as Fraile moves to the front and looks to gobble up a few more KOM points. Landa's not interested one bit. He wants the stage win and nothing less will do.

Movistar once more raise the pace in the second group as Andrey Amador sits and waits for his chance to attack. That will surely come on the next climb but there are a number of riders in the group who are keen on making a move. 

52km remaining from 161km

A flat section now before be reach the final climb of the day, the second category Monte Fumaiolo. The riders at the front are about to come through the finish line for the first time before they start climbing again. 

The flat section suits the Dumoulin chase as they chip a few seconds off the leaders. It's still all to play for and the next climb is going to be crucial. 

News in that Laurent Didier has crashed out the race. 

The gaps between the groups are beginning to come down as Trek help and FDJ help Sunweb. They are clearly worried about Amador and are protecting their GC places. 

Interesting that Bahrain are not helping with the chase. They have Nibali well placed and Visconti in the break. Nibali to attack on the next climb and then link up with Visconti on the final descent? It's certainly possible.

Trek and FDJ continue to help with the chase as the gaps continue to come down. Amador is well placed as we start the approach the final climb of the stage with 42km to go.

The peloton have upped the pace dramatically as the look to bring Amador back. Riders are being dropped and Tejay van Garderen is own of them. To be dropped with 42km to go on a stage like this is still a shock. How long will be last in this year's Giro d'Italia?

A few riders have been dropped from the second group, and Rovny is the latest to be hoovered up. Dumoulin still has the situation under control as we continue to climb. 41km to go.

41km remaining from 161km

Landa still has a small gap on the chase as we hit a short descent on the climb. The road once again starts to point upwards as we head into the final 38km of today's action. The gap to Dumoulin is 3'09.

Landa is still there punching away on his own, even though the gap is just a handful of seconds. Behind him the rest of the attackers are strung out on the climb. 

35km remaining from 161km

Landa, meanwhile, has been caught and dropped. Not sure Quintana will make a move today. He might be content to see Amador simply move up on GC in order to use him later on in the race. Time will tell.

Still around 60 men in the peloton but the climb does get harder, the closer we move to the summit. The gap is at 2'50 with 32km to go.

Herrada takes a huge turn at the front of the break and the peels off, his job done for the day. A few more riders have been dropped too. Anton is one of them. 

The gap is at 2'45 as we take on the second descent that forms part of this second category climb. Dumoulin still has two men with him as Quintana peeks his head into the wind to see what the situation is. Up ahead and Rojas lifts the pace for the break.

Roy sits up having done a job for Pinot at the front of the peloton. 30km to go. 

Steve Morabito, whose surname is the press room password for WIFI at the Tour of Romandie, takes over at the front of the peloton. Rojas, meanwhile, is giving it everything for Amador and in theory Quintana. 

Rolland and Cataldo look twitchy. They're waiting to pounce and make a move from the lead break. 

Rojas is done and De Plus attacks from the break. 

That move is closed down and Rui Costa goes with De Plus on his wheel. Rolland is chasing and should make it to the leaders. 

Dumoulin has just one teammate left but we're not far from the top as Rui Costa, Rolland and De Plus link up. They've 3km to go until they reach the summit. This is the hardest part of the climb. 

The three leaders have a decent gap at the moment and they're all working. No sign of Amador at the moment as Astana try and bring the leading three riders back.

Hermans is doing all the chasing in the second group. He said in the winter that he didn't want to target GC in a Grand Tour. Not sure he has much choice now given van Garderen's form. 

27km remaining from 161km

Dumoulin almost caught out as Amador has attacked from the second group. The race has exploded. 

Huge acceleration from the peloton with 26km to go as Nibali senses this is the time to make a move. Up ahead and Rolland has attacked having been brought back briefly. 

Thomas is there, Dumoulin, Pinot, Nibali, Quintana are all there in the maglia rosa group as the road continues to rise up. 

And Nibali goes with 26km to go. They're all on his wheel as Thomas is starting to struggle. Can Nibali keep this up? It's a huge effort from the former winner. 

Yates is there. Thomas dropped. Zakarin and Mollema there as up ahead Rolland is alone and at the front of the race. 

Kruijswijk has also been distanced. He's with Thomas. As we see Fraile claw his way back to Rolland. He wants the KOM points but he's in the hunt for the stage win too.

The gap between the two new leaders is 2'26 over the maglia rosa. Fraile takes the points at the top but the real battle is further down the climb as FDJ lead the maglia rosa group. Kruijswijk and Thomas are still off the back. Jungels and Quintana are both there and Pinot attacks.

Nibali is leading the chase but Dumoulin is holding his own. He's just following the wheels as Pinot accelerates once more. He'll have  a few seconds before they hit the top of the climb. 

23km remaining from 161km

Just 21km to go for Fraile as Nibali  tries to put Dumoulin under pressure on the descent. Almost right away he has a gap on the race leader. Up ahead and Rolland has caught Fraile. There are still more breakaway riders out there, who could still feature in the finale. Don't rule out the likes of Amador and Costa.

Pinot has 10 seconds as he dives down the descent. Nibali is chasing him with Dumoulin chasing him. 18km to go for the leaders. 

Rolland sits on Fraile's wheel as they close on the final 15km of the stage. More and more riders are coming back to the Costa group as Pinot is about to be caught by the Nibali/Dumoulin group. 

14km remaining from 161km

The second group on the road begin to peg back the two leaders and it's Rui Costa who goes clear. He has 14 seconds to make up.

The former world champion has a gap but the road climbs for a short spell and he's only able to knock a couple of seconds of Fraile's and Rolland's lead. 

Now Amador goes and the gap is at 11 seconds as Fraile pushes once more. Costa is at just 11 seconds now. 

The leaders push again and the gap is back to 14 seconds as the road dips once more. 

11km remaining from 161km

Dumoulin has ten Dam with him now and the Dutchman, the latter one, sets the pace with 10km to go. Rui Costa is now 8 seconds off the two leaders. 

Costa can see them as he sprints out of a corner on the descent. Has the former world champion found that magic form from  a few years ago?

9km remaining from 161km

7km to go and the three leaders are working well together at this point. The chase are still 17 seconds back as we see the Dumoulin group at 2'02.

6km remaining from 161km

Rolland takes a moment to look behind him and he can see the chase. Ten seconds, now nine seconds. 

Astana are leading the chase and it's down to 9 seconds with 3.4km to go. What do they have left in the tank as the leaders now start to look at each other. 

Inside the final 3km and Astana's chase can see the three leaders. They're going to make the catch.

Rui Costa and Rolland takes turns but they're playing games as Rolland attacks. 2,3km to go.

It's still 9 seconds as Astana attack and now Visconti attacks.

1.8km to and Rui Costa, Rolland and Fraile still lead but Kangert is coming across and he's done it.

Now we have four leaders with 12 seconds to go. Costa is still the fastest. Probably. 

1km remaining from 161km

Kangert is leading but they're slowing as Rolland sits second wheel.

Kangert leads out. 450m to go.

Here comes the chase!

Fraile hits the front with over 150m to go. 

There's no answer from the rest of the break. He's going to take the stage.

Omar Fraile wins stage 11 of the Giro d'Italia. What a huge sprint from the Dimension Data rider. 

The Dumoulin group are about to come to the line. The race leader has survived the attacks from several riders as we see Fraile surrounded by his team to take his first ever stage win in a Grand Tour.

Now the Thomas group come to the line. The Sky leader has lost more time and surely his GC bid is well and truly over despite his time trial yesterday. 

It was Costa who took second and Rolland third. 

Kangert led the sprint out but it was Fraile who had more in his legs. He opened up a gap and Rui Costa simply had no answer. 

1 Omar Fraile (Spa) Dimension Data
2 Rui Costa (Por) UAE Team Emirates
3 Pierre Rolland (Fra) Cannondale-Drapac
4 Tanel Kangert (Est) Astana Pro Team
5 Giovanni Visconti (Ita) Bahrain-Merida
6 Ben Hermans (Bel) BMC Racing Team
7 Dario Cataldo (Ita) Astana Pro Team
8 Simone Petilli (Ita) UAE Team Emirates
9 Maxime Monfort (Bel) Lotto Soudal
10 Laurens De Plus (Bel) Quick-Step Floors

And here's a new GC. Amador and Kangert both move up:

Omar Fraile (Dimension Data) – stage winner

That's a huge win for Dimension Data in the context of their season and an incredible performance from Fraile who was on the attack for most of the stage. First he linked up with Landa, then Fraile paced himself in the chase group before attacking on the last climb. 

Rui Costa (UAE Emirates)

 

No GC yet for outside of the top ten but another tough day for Thomas and  Kruijswijk, who both lost ground on their top ten aspirations. 

Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb) – maglia rosa

Laurens ten Dam (Team Sunweb)

Omar Fraile (Dimension Data)

 

Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb) made sure to prise his teammates after their strong ride on the climbs.

Bob Jungels (Quick-Step Floors) - Best young rider

You can find our report, results, and photos of another dramatic stage, right here.

Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida)

Come this way for a batch of post-race quotes too. 

Here's our full report, race photography, results and the stage video highlights are coming soon.

That's it from today's live coverage. We'll be back tomorrow with full live coverage from stage 12. Thanks for joining us.

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