Ben Tulett won the fourth stage of the Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali in a fantastic way fashion. With a daring attack on the final climb, the rider from Team Visma | Lease a Bike rode solo to victory. With that, Tulett also takes over the leader’s jersey from Magnus Sheffield.
“It’s a really great feeling to cross the finish line cheering again It’s been a while”, Tulett says. “I have to thank the team for today. They believed in me and I knew I had to finish it off. It’s great that I can take my first victory here on behalf of Team Visma | Lease a Bike here.”
Not for the first time this week, Tulett showed that he’s in a good shape right now. With his short position in the general classification in mind, the 23-year-old Brit waited a long time before launching his attack. On the last passage of the Valico Rio Chiè, Tulett made his move. The rider of the Dutch cycling formation crossed the finish line solo, marking his first victory in yellow and black.
Sports director Robert Wagner also was overjoyed. “This is a phenomenal victory. We discussed this scenario this morning. On the last climb it had to happen and that it worked out this way is really great. Ben had fantastic legs once again. It all came together here.”
Wagner had another chat with his rider this morning. “Ben got his first pro win here in 2022 and finished second overall that year. ‘This time we’re not going for second place. We’re going all or nothing. If you tried and get beaten, so be it’, I said to Ben. That it then turns out like this. Unbelievable, I’m immensely proud.”
In Brisighella, Italy, Tulett makes a big move in the general classification with Team Visma | Lease a Bike’s tenth win of the season. With tomorrow’s final stage coming up, the Brit is now eighteen seconds ahead of number two Mark Donovan. ‘It’s nice that my good form of the last few weeks is paying off here. Now we get to enjoy this win for a while, but the focus will soon shift towards the final stage. The Coppi e Bartali is not over yet. It’s going to be a very big day tomorrow.’
