05/29/26 10:58:00
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05/29 10:57 CDT Kuss solos to victory on Giro's brutal queen stage and
Vingegaard stays in pink
Kuss solos to victory on Giro's brutal queen stage and Vingegaard stays in pink
ALLEGHE, Italy (AP) --- American rider Sepp Kuss soloed to victory on the
toughest stage of the Giro d'Italia on Friday, while Visma-Lease a Bike
teammate Jonas Vingegaard remained firmly in the overall lead heading into the
final two days.
The so-called queen stage had more than 5,000 meters of climbing across six
tough ascents through the stunning Dolomites.
That included the mighty Passo Giau, the highest point of this year's race and
so brutal it was ranked "hors categorie" --- defying categorization.
Kuss, who had been part of the day's breakaway, crossed the line at the summit
finish of Alleghe 13 seconds ahead of Derek Gee-West to complete the Grand Tour
trilogy, having won stages in the Tour de France and Spanish Vuelta, where he
also finished first overall in 2023.
Giulio Ciccone was third, 36 seconds behind Kuss and just ahead of Felix Gall
and Vingegaard.
Vingegaard maintained his overall lead of 4 minutes, 3 seconds clear of Felix
Gall. Jai Hindley moved into third, just over a minute further back.
The winner of the Giro d'Italia will all but be decided on Saturday's
penultimate stage before the largely processional ride to Rome the following
day.
The 20th stage is a 200-kilometer (124-mile) route from Gemona del Friuli that
has three classified climbs, including the top-category ascent to the finish in
Piancavallo.
The women's Giro starts on Saturday and ends on June 7.
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AP cycling: https://apnews.com/hub/cycling
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