German Marcel Kittel admitted that he loves the Giro D'Italia after taking his second successive victory in the 2014 race.
Kittel won the third stage in Dublin and told his team's press office:
"I came here with the goal to win the first stage and after that the pressure is off slightly but today was not easy and it was really close at the finish.
"The road got really narrow with two kilometres to go and we knew that we had to be in front here and we were but I got sandwiched and it was a choice of letting go of Tom's wheel or probably crashing. This put me out of position slightly and a bit far back but I was never going to give up on the chance to win a stage.
"When I could see the finish line after the final corner I gave it everything and it was really close but I just concentrated on the line and managed to come past everyone.
"The Giro is really special to me and it is extra special to win on your birthday. I must thank my teammates for the work they did for me again today. We can have a day of down time now before targeting the next flat stages in Italy."
Picture copyright of Covsupport News Service.