Giro d'Italia highlights: stages 1-9

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Alberto Contador (Tinkoff Saxo)(Image credit: Bettini Photo)

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"It went right from the very start. A big breakaway went right away and we had two of our key climbers in the breakaway. That took a lot of pressure off the guys in the peloton so we could sit back and try to save as much energy as possible for the final. I had a really good rider in Simon Gerrans leading me out. When I saw this it was really special and I knew from there I just had to finish it off for the team."

The stage was won by Jan Polanc (Lampre-Merida) after proving himself to be the strongest rider in the long break of the day, taking the first win of his professional career just a few days after his 23rd birthday. Polanc, the third Grand Tour stage winner debutant of the first week, distanced Sylvain Chavanel (IAM Cycling) who just managed to hang on for second place at 1:31 on the same time as Aru, Porte and Contador.

"I didn’t think I'd get the pink jersey so early, the goal is to get it in Milan at the finish. This is just a taste of what is to come," Contador said. "Of course I'm really happy to have it because everybody knows how much I like the Giro d’Italia and how important this jersey is to me. We might not try too hard to keep it but it will be up to the others to take it away from me. The good thing of today is that we’ve distanced Uran and that my legs felt good."

André Greipel's third career Giro stage win was overshadowed by the news that Alberto Contador had suffered a dislocated shoulder in a late crash caused by a spectator leaning over the barrier with a protruding camera lens. Daniele Colli (Nippo-Vini Fantini) felt the full brunt of the lens which broke his left humerus in his arm and then sent 'shockwaves' through the peloton, resulting in Contador falling heavily on his left-side and dislocating his shoulder.

Alberto Contador's shoulder was given the ultimate test as he lined up for the longest stage of the 2015 edition of the race. Diego Ulissi (Lampre-Merida) emerged from a hectic sprint on the rising finish in Fiuggi for his first race since serving a nine-month ban for asthma drug Salbutamol. He tested positive during the 2014 Giro d'Italia and only made a comeback in April at the Tour of the Basque Country.

"Bueno, I’m happy that I got through the day. I knew I was not feeling great and I suffered, even if things seem to be getting better. We raced for more than seven and a half hours and after four hours I was struggling with my hand. The only thing I want to do now is put some ice on my shoulder and recover from the long stage," he said on Italian television, opting not to attend the post-race press conference.

"I was really cold-blooded today in my tactics," he said of dispatching Steven Kruiswijk (LottoNL-Jumbo) and IAM Cycling's Sébastien Reichenbach in the final four kilometres of the day to ride solo across the line. "I knew that the group in front would be incredibly strong, especially Kruiswijk, but we kept pulling and towards the finish we managed to get on terms with him, and then I made my move."

Mikel Landa banged his handlebars in frustration at finishing second, 20 seconds back, while Fabio Aru and Team Sky's Richie Porte tried their best to distance Contador but the 'Three Tenors' crossed the line together with Rigoberto Uran to raise the suggestion that the pink jersey is still a battle for the 'Fab Four'. The Colombian found his voice and legs after showing signs of recovery from the bronchitis he was suffering from at the start of the Giro.

"I'm really happy with the way it's gone today, just as I was yesterday,” said Contador. "They've been very tough days and today's stage was incredibly hard until the break went. At the end, Astana made it difficult for us, and then so did Aru and Richie. It was obvious that Aru was going to attack, he's come here to win the race just as Richie has. They tried to attack me, but despite the fall I've been able to respond. It was good to save the day and now I've got to think about resting."

The last stage before the first rest day of the Giro was always going to be a hard and fast affair with Astana doing their best to unsettle Alberto Contador and swap Fabio Aru's white jersey for the pink. At the end of the hilly stage the strategy did not work, with Aru unable to drop Contador but the team could take comfort in Paolo Tiralongo's solo victory ahead of Stephen Kruijswijk (LottoNL-Jumbo) second and Simon Geschke (Giant-Alpecin) third.

"I would have preferred to have ridden more conservatively from the final climb to the finish, but Aru asked me to work with him because Urán was behind us, and it was important to put time into him," Contador said. "We worked together, even if he sprinted to gain back a second, but I’m very happy with where I am after nine stages. I have the Maglia Rosa, and I have a rest day for my shoulder and legs to recover."