U23
Victory in the world champion jersey: Finn wins the Giro del Belvedere
The reigning U23 world champion rode to a dominant victory in the Italian classic and brought the Rookies their fourth win of the season.
Lorenzo Finn lived up to his role as favourite in the traditional Giro del Belvedere, one of the most important U23 races in the Italian spring. Around 30 kilometres before the finish of the 168.5-kilometre one-day race, the reigning U23 world champion launched his decisive attack and then pulled away alone.
I'm super happy about this victory today - and of course especially about having won my first race in the world champion's jersey.
Finn, who tackled the race for the first time in the world champion's jersey and also as last year's winner, confidently brought his lead to the finish line and won by 1:20 minutes ahead of William Smith (Great Britain, Team Visma | Lease a Bike Development). Third place went to Tommaso Bambagioni (Italy, Team Technipes #inEmiliaRomagna Caffè Borbone).
The Rookies impressed with a strong team performance.
© Werner Müller-Schell
"I'm super happy about this victory today - and of course especially about winning my first race in the world champion's jersey straight away," said Finn at the finish. "The team did a really great job throughout the day and supported me perfectly. It was still a long way to the finish after my attack, but my legs were good. It really was a perfect team effort."
Finn's team-mates Paul Fietzke, Max Bock (both Germany), Gustave Blanc (France) and Anatol Friedl (Austria) played an important part in the success, laying the foundations for the victory with their work in the race.
We had a clear plan and the team rode very cohesively and strongly.
Cesare Benedetti, the sporting director on site, praised his team's cohesive performance accordingly: "We had a clear plan and the team rode very cohesively and strongly. Lorenzo's attack came around 32 kilometres before the finish - that was certainly earlier than many others had expected. It was all the stronger to maintain this lead to the finish."
The Red Bull -- BORA -- hansgrohe Rookies will start their next race already tomorrow: The GP Palio del Recioto is another important U23 race on the calendar.
