Filippo Ganna Wins Stage 14 At 2024 Giro d'Italia, Pogacar Extends Lead

Tadej Pogacar extended his lead on the Giro d'Italia by finishing second in Saturday's 32.1-kilometer time trial at Lake Garda. Filippo Ganna won.

May 18, 2024 by AFP Report

Filippo Ganna Wins Stage 14 At 2024 Giro d'Italia, Pogacar Extends Lead

Team UAE Emirates star Tadej Pogacar extended his overall lead on the 2024 Giro d'Italia by finishing second in Saturday's 32.10 kilometer individual time trial at Lake Garda. The stage was won by Italian Filippo Ganna.

Time trial specialist Ganna timed 35 minutes, 2seconds on this 14th of 21 stages, with Pogacar in second place, 29 seconds down.

Pogacar left the starting ramp dressed from head to toe in the overall leader's pink colors and with the 'Pink Panther' movie theme playing.

And while he didn't win the stage itself, he arrived on the shores of Lake Garda 3 minutes, 41 seconds ahead of Geraint Thomas in the overall standings, with Dani Martinez at 3 minutes, 56 seconds in third and Ben O'Connor in fourth place at 4 minutes, 35 seconds.

Pogacar has extended his overnight lead in the rankings ahead of Sunday's Queen stage, which he described as 'a monster' and whose finish line is at an altitude of almost 2,400 meters (7,874 feet).

Pogacar has worked a lot on the time trial this winter, in particular, his aerodynamic position, after losing 1 minute, 38 seconds over 22 kilometers to Visma's Jonas Vingegaard in the last Tour de France.

"I raced hard over the opening section with all the turns and people," Pogacar said. "But the final flat 10 kilometers was harder."

The 25-year-old now is more than ever the man to beat, as he towers above the field in his debut Giro, after a boldly declared bid to win both the Italian race and the Tour de France this season.

For Ineos Grenadier's Ganna, it was a stressful day, the Italian rider having been pipped at the death by Pogacar in the Giro's first time trial last week.

An early starter, Ganna cut a grim figure while watching the rest of the field dash across narrow country lanes in largely open countryside.

"I suffered a lot, I had to wait two hours to see If I had won," said Ganna after what was his seventh win on the Giro, six of them in time-trials. "It's like a second home for me here at Lake Garda, though, so that made it easier."

Welshman Thomas was fourth on the day but climbs to second overall, albeit ceding 45 seconds to Pogacar on Saturday.

Australia's O'Connor produced an fabulous ride to finish seventh on the day and climb the rankings.

"I didn't feel great, but it was a great day," said the AG2R rider. "I'm starting to prove myself. I'm not at the same level as Pogacar or Jonas (Vingegaard), but I'm proving something,"

Sunday's high-altitude finish at Mottolino could suit Pogacar, with Martinez, O'Connor or French climber Romain Bardet all proven mountain performers.

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