A sprint was expected in the streets of Messina this Wednesday, at the end of the fifth stage of the Giro d’Italia (2.UWT). And in a chaotic final Biniam Girmay obtained his third top five since the start of the race, confirming his solid Grand Tour debut.
The Belgian World Team contributed to the elimination of several sprinters who were dropped during the Portella Mandrazi climb (19.6 km at 4%), by letting Lorenzo Rota and Rein Taaramäe set a strong pace downhill.
With this fast rhythm the peloton caught the early breakaway quite early, so a compact group headed towards the sprint in Messina. Girmay was brought to the front by his teammates before the final kilometer and then sprinted along the barriers on the right, avoiding a crash twice, to fifth place.
His performance along with the points gained during the intermediate sprint in Francavilla enable him to remain in second position in the battle for the maglia ciclamino.
« This is my third top five in only five stages so my Grand Tour debut has rather been good, however, I’m convinced that I had the legs to do better today. My teammates did a great job once more, but unfortunately I lost the slipstream of Loïc Vliegen in the last corner in the final kilometer. As a consequence my positioning in the approach to the sprint was not ideal, but I managed to move up a little. In the sprint I was driven towards the barriers and when this happened a second time, I didn’t want to take risks anymore. Although I had the capacities to do better, I’m happy that I can start the sixth stage unscathed and try again! »
