Stelvio ends Almeida's adventure in pink jersey at the Giro d'Italia

LAGHI DI CANCANO ITALY OCTOBER 22 Arrival Hermann Pernsteiner of Austria and Team Bahrain Mclaren Vincenzo Nibali of Italy and Team Trek Segafredo Joao Almeida of Portugal and Team Deceuninck QuickStep Pink Leader Jersey Disappointment during the 103rd Giro dItalia 2020 Stage 18 a 207km stage from Pinzolo to Laghi di Cancano Parco Nazionale dello Stelvio 1945m girodiitalia Giro on October 22 2020 in Laghi di Cancano Italy Photo by Stuart FranklinGetty Images
João Almeida gave up the maglia rosa on stage 18 of the Giro d'Italia but went down fighting (Image credit: Getty Images Sport)

In the end, the Stelvio did what the Stelvio usually does, and a different Giro d'Italia took shape on that interminable stairway of hairpins to the summit. Eleven kilometres from the top, with almost half of the mountain still to climb, it became apparent that the tappone would prove a step too far for João Almeida (Deceuninck-QuickStep).

The Portuguese rider had led the race since Mount Etna and defended his maglia rosa resolutely at Piancavallo last weekend. His stirring lone effort there, as well as his confident display at Madonna di Campiglio on Wednesday, raised the prospect that Almeida might even hold on and win the Giro at his first attempt.

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Barry Ryan
Head of Features

Barry Ryan is Head of Features at Cyclingnews. He has covered professional cycling since 2010, reporting from the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and events from Argentina to Japan. His writing has appeared in The Independent, Procycling and Cycling Plus. He is the author of The Ascent: Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and the Rise of Irish Cycling’s Golden Generation, published by Gill Books.