Corioni sprints to stage 2 victory

Image 1 of 21

Like Nick Nuyens at the Dwars door Vlaanderen, Italy’s Claudio Corioni (Acqua & Sapone) held off the sprinters to snatch victory at the Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali stage race in central Italy.

Corioni made a well-timed attack inside the final kilometre and just crossed the line before being swamped by peloton. If the finish had been just 50 metres further on, he would have been caught but Andrea Guardini (Farnese Vini Neri Sottoli) and Roberto Ferrari (Androni Giocattoli) had to settle for second and third place as Corioni celebrated his win with his arms in the air.

Ferrari missed out on victory but secured the overall race lead because a time bonus. He now leads Jackson Rodriguez and Emanuele Sella of the Androni Giocattoli team.

All the action

The 193km stage followed an out and back loop from Rovigo to the Adriatic coast. With the River Po and its delta into the Adriatic not far away, the roads were pan flat all day but that didn’t stop some great racing.

The early break of the stage formed after 21km when Kristian Forbord (Amore & Vita), Joel Eglin (Price Your Bike) and Christopher Stevenson (Spareanken Vest Ridley) jumped away. They were joined by Gianluca Maggiore and Stefano Borchi (De Rosa – Ceramica Flaminia) to create a move of five riders. They opened a gap of three minutes but the gruppo kept them in check, with the Androni Giocattoli team working to protect Emanuele Sella’s leader’s jersey.

Maggiore and Stevenson were the last of the break to be caught as the peloton began two finishing circuits around Rovigo. Everything looked set for a fast sprint finish but then several rider’s made attacks and disrupted the peloton. All the moves were pulled back but Corioni went with just 500 metres left to race and managed to hang on and take his first win of the season.

On Thursday the Coppi & Bartali race heads into the central Apennines hills for a 155.5km stage from Casalecchio di Reno near Bologna to Gaggio Montano. The stage includes two testing climbs before three laps of a hilly finishing circuit.

Full Results