Mads Pedersen triumphs in Valona: he regains the pink jersey at the Giro d'Italia

Classic route, adequate winner, as well as prestigious: still Mads pedersen, that of the first day and of the first pink sweater Danish history of the Line of Business. He takes it back to Walloon, confirming himself as the fastest of the half of the group that leaves the real sprinters by the wayside: it is his sixth goal of the season, the 52nd in a career in which he also gave his country its first world title ever, six years ago.

A rider with a capital letter, Pedersen: at the Giro he immediately showed himself to be of superior size, after a spring in which he certainly did not hold back. From Sanremo onwards he has run six classics, winning the Gand Wevelgem and never leaving the top seven in the others: if he did not manage to compete in the Rubè with Van der Poel and Pogacar it is only because a puncture put him out of the game. At the start in Albania he showed up with his sights set on the two days most suited to him, the first and third: targets hit. In between he put in a superb time trial: a deserved lead, there is no doubt about it.

"The goal was to return to pink, even if the stage was very tough: with this team by our side it was easy to achieve what they had thought of", says Pedersen, after hugging Ciccone who has worked great as a domestique up to this point. This time he does it not only on the long climb that splits the group in two, but also on the narrow roads of the finale, confidently guiding his Danish teammate. In Italy, where the Giro will restart tomorrow, we will see if the Abruzzese will also have the legs to compete in the stage he is chasing.

If Pedersen honors his status as a big name, another illustrious name sinks: Van Aert was among the most anticipated, but instead he keeps us waiting. In trouble on the opening day, not arriving in the time trial, the Belgian leaves the company as soon as the road climbs: it is certainly not what was expected from someone who, landing for the first time at the Giro, was welcomed by a route designed for his characteristics.

While the others are playing for the stage, Roglic is not interested in the sprint and his pink jersey, left in good hands: the Slovenian is sticking his nose in front only to avoid trouble. There is no shortage in a stage marked by animals: as if the goats that risk making the riders fall at the beginning of the day were not enough, a dog also dangerously appears a couple of kilometers from the sprint. A Giro can also be won by dodging bad luck, as the young Ayuso is learning to do: after the slip on the first day, here comes the puncture at the start and the failure of the radio that gives him the provisional title of Donald Duck.

Saying goodbye to Albania – today rest and transfer to Italy, tomorrow we start again with the fourth stage Alberobello-Lecce – Italy consoles itself by placing six in the top ten of the arrival order: unfortunately, from fifth place on down. Lorenzo Fortunato's escape with Bilbao on the climb of the day is more rewarding: it earns him the blue jersey of leader of the climbers, at least he goes home with a souvenir.