Kittel Wins Giro D'Italia Second Stage

Last updated : 10 May 2014 By Covsupport News Service

Giant Shimano's Marcel Kittel won the second stage of the 97th Giro D'Italia.

After yesterday's team time trial which saw one of the favourites Dan Martin crash out with a broken right collarbone and his team mate Koldo Fernandez who missed the time cut out of the race, stage two was a 219km stage which started and finished in Belfast.

Again the crowds were out in force, showing that Britain is more than capable of handling any cycle race and into Antrim,  Jeffry Johan Romero Corredor of the Colombia, Maarten Tjallingii of Belkin Pro Cycling Team, Sander Armee of Lotto Belisol, and Andrea Fedi of Neri Sottoli - Yellow Fluo were able to escape and take a five minute lead after 26 kilometres of racing.

On wet roads, there was a number of crashes, one involving Katusha's Gianpaulo Caruso but ninety kilometres into the stage, the quartet were still five minutes clear of the peloton who included race leader Sven Tuft of Orica Greenedge who had been given the gift of crossing the line first in the time trial as a 37th birthday present from his team.

Tjallingi took the King Of The Mountains climb on the Cushendall  Road, something which caused a crash five minutes later when the peloton tried to pass through the kite in the pouring rain.

The gap had dropped to 2.24 as the escaper approached the climb at Category Four Knockmagillagh at an average race speed of 41.024km/h.

Tjallinghi took maximum points on the climb to go into the blue jersey of the King Of The Mountain's leader and setting up the battle to see who would in pink at the end of the stage.

Fedi took the sprint at a very rainy Carrickfergus with seventeeen kilometres to go.

Into Belfast and Tjallinghi opted to go for the win with a 22 second lead after his fellow escapers had been swept up.

The pace of the peloton was too much and with 3.5kms left, Tjallinghi was caught.

Heading towards the finish line on Donegall Square and FDJ, Orica Greenedge and Team Sky were on the front with Trek just behind them

Into the final few hundred metres and Marcel Kittel of Giant Shimano was sent away to win in 5.13.11 ahead of Nacer Bouhani and Nizzol. Team Sky's Ben Swift was seventh.

Stage 3 is from Armagh to Dublin and is 187kms long.