Evenepoel wins Giro d'Italia opening time trial as Roglic suffers / Photo: © AFP
-
Carrick says only wins can ease doubts over Man Utd future
-
Lula campaign seeks to disqualify Bolsonaro over Meta 'interference'
-
Top NBA Draft pick Dybantsa to miss opener with ankle sprain
-
All who profited from fund scandal 'identified': Turkish minister
-
Italy sends troops, toughens security laws after Milan clashes
-
Christina Applegate says she was misdiagnosed with MS
-
Alberta separatists vow to fight on, risking turmoil for Canada
-
Ronaldo let Man Utd down says Ten Hag
-
Two men re-arrested for suspected spying for Iran in airbase scare: UK police
-
Meta says it complied with Brazil court order to treat candidates equally
-
Guatemalan man gets 30 years for truck smuggling deaths of 53 migrants
-
Inequality is major factor in impact of non-communicable diseases : WHO
-
'Clayface' gets under the skin of the superhero genre
-
Italy to send 500 troops to Milan after clashes
-
Zelensky, US envoys hold Oslo talks as Ukraine claims US missile holdup
-
BBC slashes 100 jobs, closes two channels
-
All-rounder Minhas stars as Pakistan crush England in tri-series
-
Tech jitters lead stocks lower, oil surges then slides
-
Bavuma hits 179, Rabada strikes as South Africa dominate
-
Wild West Wing? Turmoil revives memories of Trump 1.0
-
Allrounder Minhas stars as Pakistan crush England in tri-series
-
Tap water no longer drinkable near South Africa capital
-
Albania PM blames 'hybrid war' for week of unrest
-
Arsenal coach Arteta always a leader, says former teammate Gnabry
-
Bavuma hits 179 to lead South African fightback
-
Investors pledge 230 billion euros at German summit: Merz
-
Solid GM results overshadowed by latest jump in commodity costs
-
Emery adamant injuries 'no excuse' for Aston Villa
-
Houthi attacks undermine Saudi Arabia's economic ambitions
-
UN demands aid access to besieged Yemen city Taiz
-
French PM vows 'massive' police deployment for new demonstrations
-
Faletau still in Tandy's plans despite being left out of Wales squad
-
Power outage hits Google Cloud services, disrupting UK banks
-
Stock markets retreat as oil rises again
-
AI challenges maths by solving the unsolvable
-
Those who profited from fund scandal 'identified': Turkish minister
-
Turkey troops to stay in Syria, Iraq 'until border security ensured', defence minister tells AFP
-
At half a century, Senegal's Orchestra Baobab bets on new generation
-
Kulusevski a 'different man' after emotional Spurs return
-
O'Connor, Sivakov join Seixas at Decathlon CMA CGM
-
Nawaz and Minhas lift Pakistan to 302-9 in England ODI
-
Faletau left out of Wales squad for Nations Championship
-
Mourinho warns no 'untouchable' stars at Real Madrid
-
Rubio says India diversifying oil, trade deal 'very close'
-
Indonesian anger builds over wildfires, toxic haze
-
Marco Rubio Travels to India as Trade Talks Reach Difficult Stage
-
October 20 Milestones Trace Decades of Kuwait’s Development
-
James Maddison Leads Tottenham to First League Victory of Season
-
Asian Technology Shares Slide as Investors Reassess AI Boom
-
Paras Healthcare Raises ₹652.5 Crore From IPO Anchor Investors
Evenepoel wins Giro d'Italia opening time trial as Roglic suffers
Remco Evenepoel won the first stage of the Giro d'Italia on Saturday, speeding over the 19.6km run along the Adriatic coast in 21min 18sec and leaving key rival Primoz Roglic 43 seconds adrift in sixth.
Italy's Filippo Ganna was second at 22sec and Joao Almeida of Portugal was third at 29sec on the long straight route that rarely left the shoreline on the first of 21 stages in the three-week race.
The 23-year-old Soudal-Quick Step rider Evenepoel opted to ride the Giro rather that the Tour de France as it features three individual time-trials at which he excels.
Setting off in his Belgian national time-trial champion's shirt, the world road race and Vuelta a Espana winner did most of the damage in the first 10km.
Ineos rider Tao Geoghegan Hart, the 2020 Giro champion, set a better-than-expected time on the sun-kissed course, some 40sec down in fourth.
His teammate Geraint Thomas, the 2018 Tour de France champion, also did well with a respectable ninth just 55sec off Evenepoel's blistering 56kph effort.
"I said on the bus that I thought it would need 21min 30sec to win, and in the end it was 21:18 so I was quite close to my guess," said Evenepoel.
"I felt from the start in a good rhythm, always the same gear.
"I'm not really focusing on the time gaps. I just wanted to try to win the stage and in the end we won it, so mission one accomplished."
On the winner's podium, Evenepoel looked toned and happy with a short-back-and-sides haircut and his world champion's rainbow jersey, over which he pulled the Giro's iconic leader's pink jersey.
Taking the overall lead so early in the race carries aprice as the pink-jersey wearer is obliged to spend up to an hour after the race giving interviews.
The now 33-year-old Roglic not only lost 43sec on the day, he also lost four Jumbo-Visma teammates in the run up to the start, three to Covid-19 and Jan Tratnik to a fall.
The Giro winds up on May 28 in Rome with the penultimate stage another individual time-trial up a mountainside.
Stage two is a largely flat run over 201km from Teramo to San Salvo, with the first of the fearsome mountain stages where Roglic may excel on Friday.
O.Bulka--BTB
