The little-known Spaniard Pelayo Sanchez of the Movistar Team surprisingly won the gravel stage of the Tour of Italy on Thursday. “I knew I could be in the breakaway, but I could never imagine that I could win,” he was amazed afterwards.
Girodebutant Sanchez, together with two-time world champion Julian Alaphilippe and Australian champion Luke Plapp, formed the successful break and proved to be the fastest of the two on the line. Immediately after the finish he hit his head in disbelief: for Sanchez it was by far the biggest victory of his career.
“This is fantastic,” the Spaniard enjoyed his response. ‘I have no words for this. This is a crazy day for me. Since the start of the Giro I have tried to save energy, for today. I knew I could be in the breakaway, but I never imagined I could win.’
‘Very tough day’
‘I knew it would be a very tough day. Full throttle all day long. I tried to save energy first. Waiting for my moment. After two hours of racing, when there had already been a lot of attacks, I made my move. I got to the front with Plapp and Alaphilippe. I tried to drive them off, but that was impossible for me. But fortunately I was the fastest in the sprint.’
It was the third professional victory for the 24-year-old Spaniard. Earlier this season he won the Trofeo Pollenca in Mallorca, and last year a stage in the Tour of Asturias. Sanchez is in his first season at WorldTour level with Movistar.
