Eritrean rider Biniam Girmay made history on stage 10 of the Giro d’Italia as he became the first black African winner of a Grand Tour stage.
The 22-year-old beat Dutch rider Mathieu van der Poel in a sprint for the line after an attacking finale.
Van der Poel gave a thumbs-up towards Girmay as he gave up the chase and then embraced the Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert rider at the finish in Jesi.
“It’s unbelievable, I’m really grateful and happy,” said Girmay.
“Since the start, we controlled [the stage]. I don’t have any words for my team for what they did today.”
Girmay is making his Grand Tour debut at this year’s Giro and was expected to challenge for a stage victory after becoming the first black African to win a World Tour race at Belgium’s Gent-Wevelgem classic in March.
After a rest day on Monday, the race resumed with a 194km ride from the coastal town of Pescara to Jesi.
Girmay nearly missed a left turn with just over 6km to go but recovered to hold off Van der Poel, who edged out the Eritrean to take this year’s opening stage on 6 May.
Spain’s Juan Pedro Lopez retained his 12-second lead to hold on to the pink jersey.
“When we started the Giro, we knew we had a possibility to win so this is all part of the success of our team, my family, everybody,” Girmay added.
More to follow.
