Giro d'Italia stage 12 - Live coverage

Good morning and welcome to live coverage of Stage 12 of the Giro d'Italia. Stay with us all day for regular updates on the action from the peloton. Will it be a day for the breakaway, or can the sprint teams control the pace for a second bunch sprint finish in as many days?

Juanpe Lopez (Trek-Segafredo) leads the general classification by 12 seconds. It's the young Spaniard's eighth day in the maglia rosa.

Arnaud Démare (Groupama-FDJ) still leads in the points competition. Diego Rosa (EOLO-Kometa) leads the mountains classification, and João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates) wears the young rider's jersey in lieu of Juanpe Lopez.

Today's stage includes three categorised climbs, all category three. The first comes after over 90km of almost constant climbing.

With temperatures in excess of 30 degrees celsius forecast, the riders will have to contend with the heat as well as the parcours. They begin inland before working their way east towards the coast.

The peloton rolls out of Parma awaiting the official race start. It's the first stage start in Parma since 1983.

Slight delay to the race start as Arnaud Démare undergoes some costume alterations.

The race gets underway - 204km in the saddle awaits the 165 riders that remain in the 2022 Giro d'Italia.

The attacks beings with Oscar Riesebeek (Alpecin-Fenix), Fernando Gaviria (UAE Team Emirates) and a number of Lotto Soudal riders among the early contenders. 

It could take a while to establish this breakaway today with interest from many teams.

A second attack begins with Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix) and Alessandro Covi (UAE Team Emirates) involved.

A small group has a gap on the rest of the peloton: it includes Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix), Alessandro Covi (UAE Team Emirates), Luca Rastelli (Bardiani), Stefano Oldani (Alpecin-Fenix) and Matthew Holmes (Lotto Soudal).

Caleb Ewan was a DNS at the beginning of stage 12.

More riders are escaping from the peloton to try and bridge to the leading group of five riders. The peloton is closing the gap.

190km to go

Everything is back together again with the leading group of five riders reabsorbed into the peloton.

Van der Poel once again tries to attack at the front of the bunch, with a number of riders in tow. 

185km to go

With almost 20km of the day already elapsed, a breakaway still has yet to be established, with the tempo high and the peloton playing close attention to all moves.

There's a great deal of interest in being a part of today's breakaway. Riders from Bora-Hansgrohe, BikeExchange Jayco, Jumbo Visma, and Movistar are the next to try their luck.

Pascal Eenkhoorn (Team Jumbo Visma), Pieter Serry (QuickStep-Alpha Vinyl), Oier Lazkano (Movistar) and Matteo Sobrero (Team BikeExchange Jayco) have formed a lead group of four and have a gap on the peloton.

The front group of four has a gap of 15 seconds on the peloton. Van der Poel and some of his team mates are still keen to bridge the gap and join them.

Race leader Juan Pedro López (Trek-Segafredo) before Stage 12.

175km to go

Almost 30km down and still, the attacks come. Alpecin-Fenix try again, with Stefano Oldani. Israel-Premier Tech's Alessandro de Marchi are the next pair to try and escape.

It's not an easy start to the day for the 165 riders left at the Giro d'Italia. Almost 90km of false flat will be followed by the first categorised climb of the day, the Passo del Bocco. 

Riders from Intermarche Wanty Gobert, Lotto Soudal and Astana Qazaqstan now lead the peloton as the fight for the breakaway continues.

170km to go

As the riders try once again to get away gaps begin to appear in a strung out peloton. Jumbo Visma are the next team to pressure, along with Wilco Kelderman.

David de la Cruz (Astana Qazaqstan), Lawson Craddock (Team BikeExchange Jayco) and Lazkano (Movistar) open up a small gap on the chasing pack. 

Correction: the Movistar rider is Jorge Arcas. He, Craddock and de la Cruz have seven seconds on the peloton now, with more riders trying to bridge across.

165km to go

A second group with EF EducationEasypost, QuickStep-AlphaVinyl and Alpecin Fenix riders have pulled away from the bunch in pursuit of the leading group of three.

With 40km of the stage elapsed, we are still waiting for a calming of hostilities. Arcas, de la Cruz and Craddock still have a small gap, with the rest strung out in the peloton.

The maglia rosa, Juanpe Lopez, appears to be slightly isolated towards the back of the bunch.

160km to go

All back together once more. Israel-Premier Tech lead the peloton.

A substantial group of riders suddenly find themselves with a gap on the peloton. Eduardo Affini (Jumbo Visma) and Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin Fenix) are spear-heading the move.

Yet again, the bunch are back together. The first intermediate sprint of the day is approaching.

155km to go

Mechanical for Cesare Benedetti (Bora-Hansgrohe) - he's quickly sorted and on his way.

The front of the peloton is all over the road as riders once again try to get away. Almost 50km of the longest stage of this year's Giro have passed, and it's been relentless.

Six riders have a gap - will this be the one that sticks?

The riders involved in the latest move include Lennard Kämna (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Edoardo Affini (Team Jumbo Visma), along with riders from Bardiani, EOLO-Kometa and Cofidis. It looks to be coming back together again, though.

150km to go

We are heading into the first intermediate sprint of the day just outside Borgo val di Taro, where riders contending for the maglia ciclamino will race for points.

Hostilities have been neutralised as we head towards the intermediate sprint. Arnaud Démare is visible at the front of the bunch with his lead-out train.

Arnaud Démare (Groupama-FDJ) takes the 12 points at the intermediate sprint, following by Fernando Gaviria. 

The race for the breakaway kicks off once more, with Dries de Bondt (Alpecin-Fenix) leading.

145km to go

The breakneck speed of the first 60km of the race is clearly taking its toll on the riders, who look to one another to see who will make the next move.

The peloton is stretched out in one long line as they depart Borgo val di Taro and head into the region of Liguria.

A huge group of riders has a gap on the peloton, and are trying to make it stick. 

A small group including Richard Carapaz and Richie Porte from INEOS Grenadiers is chasing the large front group. It looks as if this will bring everything back together once more.

Alpecin-Fenix once again have numbers up front, as do Jumbo Visma. They still have a small gap on the rest.

The front group is around 30 riders strong. At the front of the chasing pack, Ineos Grenadiers are trying to bring them back.

Buitrago, Taaramae, Kelderman, Vendrame, Consonni, Eenkhoorn, Cort and Denz are some of the names among the large group of riders who now have 16 seconds on the chasing pack. 

140km to go

Alessandro de Marchi (Israel-Premier Tech) and yesterday's late attacker Dries de Bondt (Alpecin-Fenix) are in pursuit of the front group.

It looks as though we may finally have our breakaway. After over 60km, the front group have 40 seconds on the peloton. The chasing pair of de Marchi and de Bondt are 22 seconds behind the leaders.

Bardiani are riding on the front of the bunch trying to close the gap as they have missed the break.

The make-up of the front group is as follows:

Cort (EFE), Leemreize (TJV), Eenkhoorn (TJV), Denz (DSM), Kelderman (BOH), Van der Poel (AFC), Vendrame (ACT), Ballerini (QSV), Oldani (AFC), Mollema (TSF), Buitrago (TBV), Taaramae (IWG), Sobrero (BEX), Riesebeek (AFC), Sutterlin (TBV), Hamilton (BEX), Schwarzmann (LTS), Conti (ASQ)

The gap is now 55 seconds.

De Marchi and de Bondt give up the chase.

130km to go

So - as we stand we have a group of riders 22-men strong at the front of the race, as follows:

Cort (EFE), Leemreize (TJV), Eenkhoorn (TJV), Denz (DSM), Kelderman (BOH), Van der Poel (AFC), Vendrame (ACT), Ballerini (QSV), Oldani (AFC), Mollema (TSF), Buitrago (TBV), Taaramae (IWG), Sobrero (BEX), Riesebeek (AFC), Sutterlin (TBV), Hamilton (BEX), Schwarzmann (LTS), Conti (ASQ), Albanese (EOK), Benedetti (BOH), Barta (MOV), Rota (IWG)

Three riders - two from Bardiani and one from Drone Hopper are chasing, currently at 44 seconds.

The peloton remain 1.20 back.

Teams that have missed the break include Ineos Grenadiers and UAE Team Emirates.

The highest placed rider on GC among the breakaway is Wilco Kelderman, who sits at 11.02 behind the maglia rosa, Juanpe López

Magnus Cort leads the charge as the breakaway battle is fought over the first 60km of Stage 12.

125km to go

Finally the race has settled as we head towards the first categorised climb of the day, the Passo del Bocco. 

It's the first time the climb has been included in the Giro since the death of Wouter Weylandt during the race in 2011. The race will today honour Weylandt as it descends the Passo del Bocco.

The chasing group of three Luca Covili (Bardiani-CSF-Faizane), Edoardo Zardini (DroneHopper Androni Giocattoli) and Davide Gaburro (Bardiani-CSF-Faizane) have now closed the gap to 27 seconds on the leading group.

The peloton are now 3.52 behind.

115km to go

The three chasers are closing the gap and should make contact with the leading group in just a couple of minutes. The gap is now down to 17 seconds.

The gap is closed and the front group swells to 25. Gap to the peloton is now 4.38. 

The riders take on water before they begin the Passo del Bocco climb.

With the gap steadily going out, the leading group takes on the Passo del Bocco. The climb is 6km in length and it a category 3 ascent.

110km to go

The gap to the peloton is over 5 minutes for the first time. Currently 5.14.

Edoardo Affini (Team Jumbo Visma) has a mechanical at the back of peloton, and tries to fix his bike by slamming it on the ground to try and re-engage the chain.

Bauke Mollema is the first rider over the Passo del Bocco, taking the 9 points in the King of the Mountains competition.

Trek-Segafredo, UAE Team Emirates, Bahrain Victorious and Movistar lead the peloton up the Passo del Bocco climb.

105km to go

The peloton take on the descent of the Passo del Bocco.

We remember the passing of Wouter Weylandt, in 2011.

100km to go

With 100km of the race still remaining, let's look at the current situation.

25 riders lead the race, with the peloton currently 4.38 behind. The highest placed rider in the front group is Bora-Hansgrohe's Wilco Kelderman.

Following this descent, the road begins to rise once more, with two categorised climbs still remaining today, both category 3.

Wilco Kelderman began the Giro as one of Bora-Hansgrohe's three GC leaders, but following a big loss in time on Blockhaus on Stage 9, he's free to take his chances in the break today. The Dutchman is one of the riders with most top tens in Grand Tour stages without a win.

95km to go

The peloton is strung out down the descent of the Passo del Bocco and is taking it at a steady pace. Safety is clearly at the forefront of the minds of all the staff and riders at the race today, in light of the tragic occurrences of eleven years ago.

Lucas Hamilton is the next best placed rider on GC in the breakaway group, in 26th position at 11.56 down on the maglia rosa.

The 26-year-old Australian has never won a grand tour stage before. This is his third Giro d'Italia.

90km to go

Among the pre-race favourites for the stage were Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix) and Magnus Cort Nielsen (EF Education-Easypost). Both are in the breakaway and will likely challenge for the stage, should the breakaway be able to stay away.

The Passo del Bocco descent is complete.

85km to go

The riders will travel through the small Ligurian of Ferrada before coming to the next intermediate sprint. Following this, they will take on the category 3 La Colletta climb with approximately 53km of the race remaining.

The turn-out in Ferrada is amazing, with crowds lining the streets as the front group pass through the village.

The gap back to the peloton currently stands at 4.35.

Interesting to note that the race is running far more quickly than expected today.

Lucas Hamilton leads the breakaway on stage 12 on the Giro d'Italia.

75km to go

With the gap to the breakaway back out over 5 minutes, Trek-Segafredo have numbers at the front of the peloton, protecting the maglia rosa, Juan Pedro López.

70km to go

The race hits the 70km to go mark, with the intermediate sprint coming up, as news breaks that Team Jumbo Visma's Tom Dumoulin struggles with a back injury, just a few days after he helped team mate Koen Bouwman to a stage victory.

65km to go

The breakaway looks steady heading towards the next climb, the La Colletta. It's around 8km in length at an average gradient of 4%.

The breakaway group of 25 maintains a 4.50 lead over the peloton. Wilco Kelderman (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious) are among their number.

The reason why the number 108 will never be worn again by a rider at the Giro d'Italia.

60 km to go

We're speeding through the longest stage of the 105th Giro d'Italia, heading through Liguria towards the coast at Genova. 

The riders are currently ascending the category 3 La Colletta climb, with a breakaway group of 25 almost 5 minutes clear of the peloton, which is being driven by Trek-Segafredo.

A number of teams have strength in numbers in the breakaway group. Bahrain Victorious, Bardiani, Bora-Hansgrohe, Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert, Team DSM, Team Jumbo Visma, and Team BikeExchange Jayco all have two riders in the front group. Alpecin-Fenix have three.

There are two riders in the breakaway capable of completing a trilogy of grand tour wins today - Magnus Cort (EF Education-Easypost) and Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo). Both will be keen to add a stage of the Giro d'Italia to their palmares.

55km to go

The first attack from the front group is launched on La Colletta and it's Lorenzo Rota of Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert. 

The front group is breaking up with Rota in the lead, and four riders in pursuit including Conti (Astana), Riesebeek (Alpecin-Fenix) and Vendrame (AG2R).

Lorenzo Rota is alone at the front of the race with a small gap to the chasing group behind, who in turn have another small gap to the main breakaway group. 

The peloton remains at just over 5 minutes back. 

Rota takes the KOM points as the first rider over the climb. Riesebeek (Alpecin) and Leemreize (Jumbo Visma) give chase.

Lorenzo Rota is joined on the descent by Oldani and Leemreize to form a front group of three. They have a gap of 26 seconds over the chasing group.

Davide Ballerini of QuickStep-Alpha Vinyl gives chase.

Davide Ballerini of QuickStep-Alpha Vinyl visits his team car just prior to the La Colletta climb. He is now chasing the front group along with Mathieu van der Poel of Alpecin-Fenix.

50km to go

The peloton completes the second of three category three climbs and begins to descend. The gap to the leaders is 5.17.

The remainder of the breakaway is in disarray as the attacks go off the front. Rota, Leemreize and Oldani have a 24 second gap. Ballerini is next on the road along with Mathieu van der Poel.

The kilometres are whizzing by as the riders rush down the descent. The three leaders have 27 seconds, with Ballerini in pursuit, and the rest of the breakaway group splitting apart behind.

40km to go

The three leaders are quickly opening their gap to the chasers, with Lorenzo Rota (intermarche Wanty Gobert), Stefano Oldani (Alpecin-Fenix) and Gijs Leemreize (Team Jumbo Visma) now up to 39 seconds.

Mathieu van der Poel and Magnus Cort set off in pursuit of the lead group. The rest of the breakaway group are looking at one another as the gap continues to grow.

The riders will shortly arrive at the third and final categorised climb of the day, the Valico di Trensasco. It's shorter and sharper than the other two, 4.3km at an average gradient of 8.0%. Expect to see attacks launched from this climb, with 31km remaining in the race once it is completed.

35km to go

The leaders now have a 51 second lead, with Ballerini and Riesebeek in no man's land between them and the rest of the breakaway, who are strung out and no longer working efficiently together. With the peloton now 5.48 behind, it's looking likely that our winner will come from the original breakaway.

As the front group attack the climb, they are spread out down the road, no longer a cohesive unit. Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious) takes off from the front in pursuit of the three-man leading group.

The final climb is proving to be a stringent test for the tired breakaway riders. Rota, Leemreize and Oldani maintain their gap at 51 seconds. Van der Poel struggles behind.

Hamilton (BEX), Kelderman (BOH), Buitrago (BHV) and Mollema (TFS) form a chase group of four ahead of the remains of the original breakaway group.

The three leading riders are working well together. None of the three have a World Tour win, and with two Italian riders within the group, it could be a second Italian stage win in as many days, following Alberto Dainese becoming the first Italian to win a stage at this year's race yesterday.

The three at the front have worked well together up this climb, which is almost over. Once they pass the summit they will have just over 30km of the stage remaining.

30km to go

The fight is on from the chasing group behind, who have closed the gap to 36 seconds now. It contains Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo) who could complete his grand tour trilogy with a stage win today.

The gap between the two front groups holds steady at 37 seconds on the fast, technical descent towards the coast.

25k to go

With three riders at the front and four more 39 seconds behind them, we've narrowed down the potential winners of this stage 12 of the Giro d'Italia, with only 25km remaining in the race. 

The gap to the peloton is up to 7.48 now.

The chasing group of Hamilton, Kelderman, Buitrago and Mollema remains at 38 seconds behind the front group.

The group of three are still working well together as they travel through the streets of Genova. A reminder that each of them is looking for their first World Tour win. It will be the second stage win for which ever team wins.

20km to go

The leading group of Rota, Leemreize and Oldani have extended their lead once again, with 44 seconds on the chasing group. It's looking increasingly likely that we will see the first win for one of these three riders today.

It's Lorenzo Rota's (Intermarche) fifth Giro d'Italia. His top result on a stage before this was 9th in 2017.

For Stefano Oldani (Alpecin-Fenix), it's his third Giro, with his best finish a 4th place last year.

It's Gijs Leemreize's (Jumbo Visma) debut at the race, and indeed, his first appearance at a Grand Tour.

15km to go

The three race leaders have stretched their lead to 52 seconds. 

The peloton are now 8.10 behind.

The leading group, with less than 15km remaining.

Two riders from Italy and one from the Netherlands will ride for the win on today's stage, the longest of the Giro this year. Just 12.6km remain.

The riders enter a tunnel and disappear from view. We are closing in on the final of the stage, and we will shortly find out which team will celebrate their second stage victory of the Giro so far - Alpecin-Fenix, Jumbo Visma or Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert.

10km to go

The chasing group are 45 seconds behind but don't look like they have the ability to close the gap to the leading group of three.

The peloton are now at 8.32. 

We are closing in on the last few kilometres of stage 12. The front group maintain their lead with a gap of 41 seconds. Who will be the first to attack?

In terms of the general classification, Wilco Kelderman (Bora-Hansgrohe) stands to gain the most from the day. He looks likely to jump from 23rd to around 14th or 15th on GC following his strong ride today.

Juan Pedro López looks set to retain the maglia rosa for a ninth day running, with his team Trek-Segafredo having driven at the front of the peloton for the majority of the day.

5km to go

It's almost time for the fireworks to begin as the three riders at the front of the peloton all aim to secure their first win, and what a way to do it - a Giro stage win not a bad way at all to open your palmares.

3.6km to go in the city of Genova and the three riders at the front will shortly face off for the win. 

3km to go

Who will take their first ever pro win? Which team will claim their second Giro 2022 stage? Lorenzo Rota, Stefano Oldani and Gijs Leemreize head towards the finish line.

2km to go

The finish goes slightly uphill which will add to the tension as the riders complete their day. 

The three front-runners begin to look at one another as they close in on la flamme rouge.

1km to go

The crowds are tightly packed to cheer the riders towards the finish line. 

Leemreize is the first to attack.

It goes down to the final sprint. 

Stefano Oldani wins stage 12 of the Giro d'Italia

Leemreize opens up his sprint first, but Stefano Oldani kicks and holds on for the win. 

Two wins for Alpecin-Fenix, the first pro win for Oldani and the second Italian to win in two days.

The next group comes in, with Mollema and Buitrago in 4th and 5th, ahead of Kelderman in 6th and Hamilton in 7th. Kelderman will make significant gains on GC.

Andrea Vendrame rolls in 8th, and Rein Taaramäe in 9th.

The peloton head into Genova city centre, around 8.45 minutes behind the winners. Let's see how much time the likes of Kelderman and Hamilton will make back on GC.

The peloton arrives at the final kilometre, with the bunch all together including all the top riders on GC.

Juan Pedro López retains the maglia rosa

The Spanish rider for Trek-Segafredo will wear the pink jersey for the ninth day in a row on Stage 13 tomorrow.

Lorenzo Rota after stage 12: 'I've got legs and I wanted to have a go. Oldani was a little a bit stronger than me.'

'I tried to be on the wheel right until the end. We are doing a fantastic Giro so I'm quite happy. We will give a lot more of a show from here until the end.'

Stefano Oldani: 'I know Rota, he's my friend, that he's also fast, so it wasn't so easy to manage it.'

'For sure [Mathieu van der Poel] was crucial. We knew already if more than one of us were present in the break, the others would watch Mathieu. We were the only team with three, and we did it.'

'I worked really, really hard for this. It seems like magic that I've done it.'

Stefano Oldani wins stage 12 of the Giro d'Italia

Wilco Kelderman: 'I'm just not good enough on the long climbs to challenge for GC. I wanted to go for the stage win today.'

Lucas Hamilton: 'we went as hard as we could. In the end the three guys at the front were too strong and we couldn't bring it back.'

Wilco Kelderman gains around 8.30 on GC but admits he is not up to the general classification battle and would prefer just to go for stage wins.

The grupetto arrives 19.38 down on the winner. The group includes the maglia ciclamino Arnaud Démare. They will battle again tomorrow.

Maglia rosa Juan Pedro López: 'I like the heat, and I like the rain. You need to adapt.'

On taking the maglia rosa for the ninth day: 'my objective was to try to win some stages, but now I live a dream, nine days in the maglia rosa is amazing.'

Thanks for joining us for live updates today, do join us again tomorrow for stage 13.

Arnaud Démare retains the maglia ciclamino.

The peloton passes through Genova on stage 12

Thanks for joining us for stage 12 of the Giro d'Italia - join us again tomorrow for more action, as the race travels from Sanremo to Cuneo where we expect another sprint finish.