When Ineos Grenadiers came to the front of the decisive Tagliacozzo category-1 climb at the end of stage 7 of the Giro d'Italia, a few journalists in the race press room were left scratching their heads. What were the British team up to, given they were admittedly fielding a top outside contender with Egan Bernal, but certainly not one of the main favourites?
Ten kilometres further up, after Bahrain Victorious had taken over pacing for the middle section of the 15 kilometre ascent, only for Ineos' Jonathan Castroviejo and Thymen Arensman to return to the fray as the steepest segment approached, the answer finally emerged.
Far from waiting for the top GC contenders to challenge, Egan Bernal put in not one, but two searing attacks, in what was arguably his most notable climbing performance in a Grand Tour since his life-threatening crash three years ago and his arduous comeback since then.
Bernal could not take the win, but he still hung on for third behind UAE Team Emirates-XRG duo Juan Ayuso and Isaac del Toro.
It was his best mountains result in a Grand Tour GC since he won the Giro d'Italia in 2021, and the sight of Bernal performing so well in his colourfully redesigned national champion's jersey was one that surely had Colombian fans cheering with delight back home.
"Maybe this jersey" - its new design being a homage to the first Colombian team to win a Grand Tour, the Vuelta a España back in 1987 - "gave me wings," Bernal said. "And I certainly feel very satisfied and proud with this result."
Bernal said that although he could not take the victory, he had felt so good during the climb itself that he had put the team to work and then "I just went for the stage, I had to keep going."
"At a certain point I really felt I could fight for it, there was just a little bit missing," he said. :If I'd got 10 metres more [distance on my rivals], it could have been a different outcome. But I'm very satisfied, all the same."
Fourteenth overall at 48 seconds, Bernal is far from out of the GC battle, and with strong performances in the past in Strade Bianche – he was third there in 2021 - and as defending Colombian time trial champion, he has plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the upcoming short-term challenges, with the gravel stage coming on Sunday and Tuesday's TT.
But in the longer-term, too, and when it comes to raising the bar all round on his future Grand Tour options as well, his standout performance on the slopes of Tagliacozzo also augers very well indeed.
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