Stage 1

The road

At the start

The Giro starts in Albania

Durrës, and for the first time the Giro begins in Albania — three days on the far side of the Adriatic before Italy. Tadej Pogačar is not here, so the pink jersey is open, and the favourites sit at opposite ends of a career: Primož Roglič at thirty-five, Juan Ayuso at twenty-two. The opening day is hilly rather than flat, with a categorised climb inside the last forty kilometres.

How it was won

1. 141 km to go

   A late dig in Albania

   The hilly finale around Durres features a late categorised climb that splits the sprinters from the puncheurs.

2. 25 km to go

   Pedersen vs Van Aert

   On the rising drag to the line Mads Pedersen and Wout van Aert go clear of the reduced bunch and lock horns.

3. 3At the line

   Pedersen takes first pink

   Pedersen edges Van Aert to win the opening stage and pull on the first maglia rosa.

The result