Stage 10

The road

At the start

Assisi, and thirteen men inside a minute

Nothing moved at Frosinone: Ryder Hesjedal still leads by nine seconds from Joaquim Rodríguez, Tiralongo is at fifteen, and thirteen riders sit within a minute of the maglia rosa. Today ends up at the walls of Assisi — a climb, a plunging descent and another climb inside the last five kilometres, fifteen per cent at its worst. The first finish of this Giro built for a puncheur, and there is one in second place.

How it was won

1. 1179 km to go

   Five up the road, thirteen men within a minute

   Bonnafond, Mínguez, Failli, Brändle and Keizer take two minutes. Behind them the top thirteen on general classification are all inside a minute of Hesjedal, and every one of them is watching the others.

2. 230 km to go

   Clement bridges into the gap

   Thirty kilometres out Keizer and Brändle come off the back of the break, and Stef Clement bursts out of the bunch to join them. For a few kilometres the three of them chase the three in front while the peloton eats the lot.

3. 35 km to go

   Into Assisi at fifteen per cent

   With just over five kilometres left everything is together and the road stands up: fifteen per cent at its worst, climbing towards the walls of Assisi. Hesjedal is on the front with no team-mates left, riding alongside Rodríguez and Scarponi.

4. 43 km to go

   Urán and Gadret off the descent

   The climb turns into a plunging descent and Rigoberto Urán and John Gadret sweep round the outside of everyone. It lasts about a minute; then the road goes up again.

5. 5At the line

   Rodríguez takes Assisi and pink

   Daniel Moreno drops his leader into exactly the right place at exactly the right moment and Joaquim Rodríguez powers away up the last ramp. Huzarski and Visconti take the places; the maglia rosa leaves Canada for Spain.

The result