Bernal back on form with Giro top 10

Egan Bernal safely crossed the finish line in Rome on the final stage of the Giro d’Italia to claim seventh overall, just over three years after his life-threatening crash.

Despite a number of crashes across the three weeks, Bernal showed his tenacity to comeback as a real Grand Tour contender for the first time since his almost career-ending crash in 2022.

A third place on stage seven and multiple top-10 stage finishes saw Bernal return to his familiar ways on the road, with sensational attacks and incredible spirit to fight back in the mountains.

Winner of stage two, and second on stage 10, it was a fantastic Grand Tour debut for Josh Tarling. The young rider was a force to be reckoned with on his time-trial bike, but also was a strong domestique, setting blistering paces on the front of the peloton for the team, before an unfortunate crash on stage 16 ended his Giro d’Italia.

Tarling’s vlogging partner, Ben Turner, also had a successful Giro debut, sprinting to third on stage 12. His fourth Grand Tour, Turner was also a familiar face on the front of the peloton, notably pulling turns in the flat and punchy moments.

Brandon Rivera demonstrated fantastic all-round ability, proving himself on the climbs, but also at the pointy ends of the race, claiming a fourth and eighth place on two sprint stages. The highlight of Rivera’s performance came on the gravel stage nine, leading his compatriot Bernal in the break with Wout van Aert (Visma - Lease A Bike) and the maglia rosa at the time, Isaac Del Toro (UAE - Emirates XRG). Always the life and soul of the peloton and the party, Rivera was missed after falling ill before stage 14.

Thymen Arensman was also in the running on the GC, getting inside the top-10, and riding strongly to eighth place on the ninth stage, before an unfortunate crash on stage 16 hampered his performance. The Dutch rider continued to battle throughout the rest of the Grand Tour, switching to more of a domestique role and working hard to position Bernal well.

Having announced his retirement just under a week ago, Jonathan Castroviejo showed his experience during his final Giro d'Italia. The Spanish rider was a huge support in the mountains and on the flats, regularly pulling big turns to ensure the team was in the best position.

Kim Heiduk’s first Giro d’Italia proved a successful one. Acting as a satellite rider on multiple stages, Heiduk was exciting to watch in the early breaks, while he also took his domestique duties seriously, even gifting Bernal his bike on stage three.

Lucas Hamilton did much of the often thankless work this Giro. Setting the pace, carrying bottles, positioning Bernal and Arensman, and also overcoming a nasty crash on stage nine, Hamilton battled through it all and was a key team player.