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With nine stages of the 2024 Giro d’Italia now complete, it’s time for the riders to take a hard-earned rest day. It’s also a great time for us to look back on the first ‘week’ of the race, to remember all that’s happened so far and the performances that stood out. We do that today courtesy of a series of photos from Chris Auld (shooting for Gruber Images) and via the Cor Vos photo agency.
We already covered stages 1 and 2 in a standalone gallery this time last week, but as a quick reminder …
… pre-race favourite Tadej Pogačar was on the move on the very first day, sparking the winning move.He was beaten in the end by Jhonatan Narvaez …… who took the first maglia rosa of the race.Pogačar was on the move again on stage 2, but this time he got away on his own on the summit finish …… won the stage comfortably …… and took the overall lead.Stage 3 took the riders from Novara to Fossano on a day that featured only a few small climbs.Geraint Thomas was lured out of the bunch by a late surge from Tadej Pogačar, with the pair leading the race ahead of the sprint.But it would ultimately finish in a sprint …… with Tim Merlier taking the win …… which he dedicated to fellow Belgian Wouter Weylandt who died 13 years earlier, while racing the 2011 Giro d’Italia.The early part of stage 4 featured a bit of up …… and down.A couple of crashes on the day saw Biniam Girmay leave the race.The riders headed down to a section of coastline that was familiar to anyone who’s ever seen Milan-San Remo.Despite being in the early break for a time, Filippo Ganna tried his hand off the front late.But again it would end in a bunch sprint, with Jonathan Milan improving on his second place from a day earlier …… and taking the maglia ciclamino (lead in the points classification) for this troubles.Stage 5, from Genova to Lucca, was another one with a few lumps and bumps along the way …… but it seemed likely to go the way of the sprinters.Pogačar had been safely in pink since his win on stage 2.More coastal action on stage 5.While it looked like a day for the sprinters, the breakaway managed to hang on …… with Benjamin Thomas nabbing the stage win from the group of four, just 11 seconds clear of the chasing bunch.Stage 6 was a much-anticipated one, featuring some of the legendary white gravel roads of Tuscany.The break of the day: Pelayo Sánchez, Julian Alaphilippe, and Aussie champ Luke Plapp.As a two-time winner of Strade Bianche, Pogačar wasn’t in any difficulty on the gravel roads.Look familiar?The break managed to stay away on a hard, undulating day, with Sánchez beating Alaphilippe and Plapp to the line.It’s the biggest win in the career of the 24-year-old Spaniard.Onto stage 7, the first of two individual time trials in this year’s race.Dani Martínez started the day in third overall, but a strong ride moved him up to second, ahead of Geraint Thomas.The feeling was that Pogačar would be unbeatable at this year’s Giro and, so far, we’ve seen nothing to suggest otherwise.It was a day of big helmets …… more big helmets …… and of Filippo Ganna seeing if he could beat Pogačar. He could not. Pogačar rode his way to the stage win on a 40.6 km course that ended with a fair chunk of climbing. His overall lead now? 2:36 with 14 stages still remaining.If Pogi was feeling the pressure of the overall lead and being the unbackable favourite, you wouldn’t have noticed at the start of stage 8.Classic shot.Stage 8 took the riders from Spoleto to Prati di Tivo, finishing with a solid climb of nearly 15 km.A day in the break saw Romain Bardet win the prize for most combative rider.While the GC challengers did their best to keep Pogačar in check …… the vibe was a little more relaxed at the other end of the field.Seven riders got to the top of Prati di Tivo together after a bunch of attacks. When it came to the final sprint though, Pogačar was simply too good, comfortably winning his third stage in eight so far.Martínez was second, holding on to second overall.And so to the final stage before the first rest day.It was another day with a few lumps and bumps, but nothing that looked terribly likely to thwart the sprinters.A visit to Napoli meant some more time along the coast.Stage 1 winner Narvaez put in a late dig that, for a time, looked like it might succeed. But with a concerted chase – including from overall leader Pogačar – the Ecuadorian champ was brought back into the fold …… ahead of the expected bunch kick. In his first Grand Tour, 22-year-old Dutchman Olav Kooij took the win – already the 33rd of his career.His Royal Tuftiness, meanwhile, leads the Giro by 2:40 going into the first rest day.Will his name be etched on the Trofeo Senza Fine in a few weeks, as everyone expects?
