Despite numerous attempts, no general classification contender could shake the Maglia Rosa from the shoulders of Tom Dumoulin (NED) after a demanding day in the Dolomites.
As a breakaway vanquished, it came down to the group of general classification contenders to fight it out on the last climb of the day. Although many tried, no attack was able to go clear and the day ended with Dumoulin leading the favourites over the line to take 9th on the stage with no time losses. Dumoulin holds a 31 second lead over his closest rival after stage 18.
After the stage Dumoulin said: “I felt really good today and I’m really happy that I didn’t loose any time. When the attacks came I just kept my cool, rode my own climb things came back together. I also tried my luck on the approach to the finish but nothing stuck and in the end I rolled across the line with the other favourites. I’m glad to have survived another day and look forward to tomorrow.”
Team Sunweb coach Aike Visbeek (NED) added: “Today was a really hard day, especially after another tough day yesterday. The guys fought really hard to put Tom in a good position and keep him there. There was a lot of pressure from the other teams but Tom stayed cool and calm and the final went well. We can look back and be proud of how we dealt with what was a tough stage.”
