AJ August enjoyed a strong day out in the breakaway at the Tour of the Alps, while Thymen Arensman sprinted to 15th on the opening test.
Arensman kicked off his GC campaign in Italy, sprinting to the line in San Lorenzo Dorsino as part of a select GC group.
August was part of a three-man move which went clear early on a mountainous opener, alongside Finlay Pickering (Bahrain – Victorious) and Davide Bais (Team Polti-Visit Malta).
The trio combined well, holding an advantage of three minutes and 40 seconds over the day’s highest point – the Campo Carlo Magno climb.
Their advantage was slashed on the run down to the Passo Durone, with August finally caught at the start of the climb with 25km to go. The team had numbers in the peloton through the day to support Arensman, who worked his way into the GC group ahead of the finale.
Thymen put in an acceleration following the Durone, and would then work hard to limit his losses as the punchier climbers broke free in the final kilometre. The Dutchman crossed the line 11 seconds back, with plenty of climbing on the agenda for the remaining four stages. Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) timed his kick well to take the stage win and the early race lead.