The talent of riders like Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) and Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers), including in more hilly terrain, has never been a secret, but both have stood out among some of the sport’s top climbers this past week at both Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico. Ganna, for instance, finished a remarkable second overall in Italy behind winner Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) who is off to the Giro d’Italia in May with his sights set on pink.
At Paris-Nice, Pedersen got involved in the sprints early in the week, amassing a stack of sprint points, before embracing the terrible weather and crosswinds on Friday, which culminated in a stage victory reminiscent of his 2019 world championship title won in similar conditions. The final weekend of the ASO-run stage race was on paper reserved for the more climb-oriented riders in the field, but Pedersen was not there just to make it to Nice. The Dane was there to race.
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