This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Become a member here We use cookies to improve your browsing experience A flat final 100km means that any sprinters who get dropped on the early climb can still be in contention for the expected bunch sprint 2024Distance: 207kmStart location: Foiano di Val FortoreFinish location: FrancavillaStart time: 12:05 CETFinish time (approx): 17:11 CET Today marks a turning point of the Giro d'Italia it’s the halfway point of the race in terms of days spent racing it marks the moment when the route ceases its southern trajectory down the peninsula The riders will set off from the small town of Foiano di Val Fortore a place that will cause excitement among cheese lovers It’s around here in Campania that Podolica cattle are found pulled-curd cheese that gets its name and distinct flavour from being hung in pairs and tied by a string while ageing From Foiano di Val Fortore they will head northwards through Molise before reaching the Adriatic coast in Abruzzo which they will spend the final 85km travelling north along before reaching the finish at Francavilla With no climbs tackled here along the coast Francavilla is known for its sandy beaches whose beautiful views and warm weather these days attracts tourists and in the late 19th century inspired artist Francesco Michetti to form an artistic literary club here Michetti would meet with other intellectuals ranging from musicians and the poet Gabriele D'Annunzio at the former monastery of Santa Maria di Gesù Like much of the town during the Second World War the centre was destroyed during a bombing campaign but their paintings from the club remain to be seen Though this monastery was located atop a hill allowing the artists to observe the view of the town The only challenging terrain for them to negotiate comes 40km into the stage when they must climb the category three Pietracatella and is followed by downhill and flat roads The finish is especially helpful to sprinters with the final 3km all completed on one long wide road that will be conducive to avoiding crashes and bringing back any attackers still out there Perhaps the one hard thing about the stage is its length as one of the few stages this year to exceed 200km but the riders are unlikely to be racing hard enough to notice While coastal roads at this time of the year usually just means the riders get to enjoy pleasant views of the sea if the weather’s bad and wind blows the right direction A sprint finish would still be likely in that scenario but the sprinters would have to work hard to stay at the very front of the race the riders’ will be anxiously checking weather forecasts before deciding how to race this one Stage profile sourced via the Giro d'Italia website no sprinter has dominated all the bunch finishes each sprint stage has seen a different rider take the victory Tim Merlier (Soudal–Quick-Step) won stage three and Olav Kooij (Visma-Lease a Bike) won the last sprint opportunity in Napoli on stage nine Kooij is now out of the race after falling ill before the start of stage 10 so the battle between Merlier and Milan continues as we expect another fast finish in Francavilla al Mare as plenty of other sprinters in the peloton won’t want to miss out on another opportunity for a stage win who came second on stage four and is also sitting second in the points classification His Alpecin team have been working extremely hard to bring him to the line first Groves has just lacked the finish against Milan and Merlier that has prevented him from reaching the top step of the podium Alberto Dainese (Tudor Pro Cycling) performed well on stage nine who placed fifth and could be a potential for victory Other fast finishers who have rivalled for the top spots in the sprints are Juan Sebastián Molano (UAE Team Emirates) and Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain-Victorious) Another contender for the stage could be Caleb Ewan (Jayco-Alula) who is looking to end his three-year Grand Tour drought but his highest finish so far this Giro has been sixth place and hasn’t been in the top 10 in the other opportunities We think Jonathan Milan will take the spoils in the sprint on this stage making this his second stage win for the race fearsome mountain passes and a Balkan Grande Partenza Rouleur takes a look at the contenders to win the Maglia Rosa in Italy this month Alexander Vinokourov's team are making the impossible rather quite possible All the essential information about the first Grand Tour of the year While the former Olympic and World champion is relishing new ventures in retirement she is keen to ensure more support is in place for those.. Enjoy a digital subscription to Rouleur for just £4 per month and get access to our award-winning magazines Join today for exclusive content from independent journalists This site is protected by hCaptcha and the hCaptcha Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply Milan pips Soudal-QuickStep rider as Jakobsen caught in a crash in final hundred metres proving to be too big and too powerful once again as a messy sprint in Francavilla al Mare saw a crash for the likes of Fabio Jakobsen (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) in the final kilometre Milan stayed safe throughout the hectic finale until he latched onto Tim Merlier’s (Soudal-QuickStep) train in the final few hundred metres and blasted past the Belgian to the line for his fifth win of the season Merlier hit the front first after a strong Bert Van Lerberghe lead-out but swung out sharply to the right-hand side, forcing Juan Sebastian Molano (UAE Team Emirates) to stop his sprint momentarily. The Colombian threw his hand up in appeal over the line and after the stage finish Merlier was subsequently relegated for his move in the finale Merlier must’ve thought he was going to win his second stage at this year’s Giro until the big frame of Milan came through on his left in the maglia ciclamino to take the victory with Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) coming home behind them for third at the line Merlier's relegation moved him down to 89th on the stage with Giovanni Lonardi (Polti-Kometa) bumped up to third “He’s [Merlier] always tricky in the final It was a tricky final also with some corners and also this straight finish,” said Milan post-stage.  “It was more difficult to manage than a normal finish with some corners so in the end I found myself on his [Merlier’s] wheel.  He started his sprint really strong but then I tried to make mine and it went good.” Milan was beaming with a smile in his interview delighted with the work done in the run-in by the likes of Edward Theuns and Jasper Stuyven “You know it's not just this 20-second sprint that makes me happy or the victory in the end that the team did for me,” said Milan bringing me to the crucial position for the sprint Today is just unbelievable what the guys did for me They always believe in me and I have to say thanks from the bottom of my heart.” The only changes in GC came due to a Cian Uijtdebroeks abandon before the stage with Milan also extending his lead in the points classification “I think it's really special [to win in ciclamino] Last year I was always close but made some mistakes I think the most important thing to do is learn from these and go further,” He said “We did that with the team and I’m proud of this.” Despite its 207km route and potential for a break to get away in the early stages stage 11 of the Giro d’Italia started as the calmest yet in 2024 There wasn’t a furious fight when the flag was dropped outside Foiano di Val Fortore but just a three-rider move that would get away.  Edoardo Affini and Tim van Dijke (both Visma-Lease a Bike) were the takers when race director Stefano Allochio got the racing underway.  The latter duo granted new freedom with GC leader Cian Uijtdebroeks abandoning the race The young Belgian was leading the best young rider’s white jersey classification while also sitting fifth overall were not gifted the same license to get away in the opening 50km of the 11th stage.  Soudal-QuickStep and Jayco-AlUla were all on hand to keep the trio well within their reach over the next 150km Little action was present in likely the calmest four hours of racing at this year’s Giro so far the break was kept very close and all eyes were on another sprint finish alongside the Adriatic Sea.  Milan and Groves would mop up the remaining ciclamino points at the first two intermediate sprints respectively behind the breakaway but without much energy spent Their teams would be the most active on the front of the peloton throughout the day The trio in front were reeled in with 35.3km to go after they were given no chance of making it and suddenly the furious fight for position began in the bunch with each GC team and sprint team wanting to make sure they were at the front A small attack from Andrea Piccolo (EF Education-EasyPost) woke up everyone 20km from the line one of Pogačar’s key mountain domestiques Felix Großschartner went down in a crash but he gingerly got back on and finished the stage.  Full focus then turned on making it to the 3km to go mark in Francavilla al Mare with it arriving dangerously after two 90-degree corners in the coastal town This was best done by Ineos Grenadiers with Ben Swift and Magnus Sheffield doing quite the job to protect Geraint Thomas and keep him in pole position Ultimately the GC field all came home safe in the finale despite Pogačar not being best positioned and being forced to go the long way around some tricky road furniture.  Jayco AlUla hit the front too early in the long ultimately being swamped when Soudal-QuickStep Lidl-Trek and Alpecin-Deceuninck moved up their fast men.  The big favourites made it out to contest the finish but a touch of wheels caused Madis Mihkels to lose control and head straight into the path of Fabio Jakobsen and Tobias Lund Andresen (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) and take them down close to the barriers as the victory was played out ahead Results powered by FirstCycling during which time he also wrote for Eurosport Prior to joining the team he reported on races such as Paris-Roubaix and the Giro d’Italia Donne for Eurosport and has interviewed some of the sport’s top riders in Chloé Dygert he spends the majority of his time watching other sports – rugby Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker hidden until the end: Jonathan Milan put down all the power he had inside knives and slaps in the final to recover all the relaxation of the long kilometers of this stage There was also a fall in the middle of the group Molano complained about a skid by Merlier (who moved from the center of the road almost to the barrier and for this Milan was already perfectly launched towards the finish line Team Visma Lease a Bike responded immediately to those who had commented on the withdrawals deemed too hasty the last one by Cian Uijtdebroeks in the white jersey Do you think we don't care much about the Giro d'Italia Here are two riders ready to launch into the breakaway as soon as the Race Director lowered the checkered flag: Tim Van Dijke and Edoardo Affini to act as third to share the wind in their faces in the first Follow our Special Giro d'Italia If you want to have your say, here is our group Cyclinside – R&D | Facebook Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" © Cyclinside - all rights reserved - Reproduction of photographs and texts for more than 10 percent is prohibited It is mandatory to indicate the link to the page © Cyclinside - all rights reserved - Reproduction of photographs and texts for more than 10 percent is prohibited Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: Be one of the first to try our new activity feed Early break likely to take advantage of tougher first half of stage The first half of the 207km stage 11 from Foiano di Val Fortore accounts for almost all of the altitude gain of 1,850 meters with rolling roads through the Apennines prefacing and succeeding the sole categorized climb The profile soon switches to a downhill and then The last four kilometers before the finish in Francavilla al Mare feature two right-hand bends and then a very long where the day’s early break will hope to hold off hard-chasing sprinters’ trains Jonathan Milan wins as Tim Merlier is relegated from second ahead of Kaden Groves in Francavilla al Mare Buongiorno and welcome to Cyclingnews' live coverage of stage 11 of the 2024 Giro d'Italia Just under an hour to go before the start of the stage.. There's a hilly start to the day but the second half of the stage is fully flat meaning we should see a sprint finish in Francavilla al Mare But the big news this morning is that GC contender Cian Uijtdebroeks has abandoned the Giro from fifth overall Cian Uijtdebroeks abandons Giro d’Italia as Visma-Lease a Bike down to four riders Visma-Lease a Bike team leader held the white jersey and 5th place in the general classification Yesterday's 10th stage up to the summit finish at Bocca della Selva saw the breakaway take the win with a few small changes in the GC top 10 Giro d'Italia: Valentin Paret-Peintre follows in his brother's footsteps with stage 10 victory Tadej Pogačar protects maglia rosa on first summit finish of week two And here's a look at the current GC standings at the Giro d'Italia after stage 10 Tadej Pogačar retains pink jersey on summit finish as Bardet and Zana jump into the top 10 Around 20 minutes to go before the stage starts now Here's the map of the stage as the peloton heads to the coast Stage 11 will be getting underway very soon Two more non-starters today as Stefano Oldani (Cofidis) and Louis Barré (Arkéa-B&B Hotels) have both left the race.  Oldani is sick while Barré has suffered an injury to the fingers on his right hand 155 riders continue in the Giro d'Italia today The riders have now started the roll out in the neutral zone at the start of stage 11 A delay to the proper start as Madis Mihkels and Juan Pedro López suffer mechanicals in the neutral zone The flag drops after an extended neutral zone and the stage is under way Thomas Champion is the first man to go on the attack Edoardo Affini joins him from the depleted Visma-Lease A Bike team No big rush in the peloton to close the move down Lidl-Trek controlling it at the head of the peloton for sprinter Jonathan Milan Race leader Tadej Pogačar and new white jersey Antonio Tiberi greet one another at the start today The riders are over the first unclassified hill of the day and there have been no further attacks in the peloton The gap is still growing for the breakaway but it's only at 2:15 as the peloton keeps things in check The riders in the valley now on the road to the only classified climb of the day The riders now about to start the climb to Pietracatella (8.4km at 5.4%) 2:20 for the break now with the riders halfway up the climb Geraint Thomas 'just wanted to hide' and flies under radar at latest Giro d’Italia summit finish Briton concentrates on saving energy as ‘with the headwind nothing was really going to go’ Soudal-QuickStep also helping at the front of the peloton along with Lidl-Trek 500 metres to the top as the breakaway enters Pietracatella Van Dijke leads Champion and Affini over the top of the third-category climb for nine points That was the only classified climb of the day Jonathan Milan argues with a rider from UAE Team Emirates It looks like the rider might have accidentally blocked him from taking a musette at the feed zone at the top of the climb the break head up another short unclassified climb After there are no major uphill runs before the end of the day Giro d'Italia abandons: The full list of riders who have left the 2024 race 21 riders have abandoned so far as illness spreads in second week Still the same three men up front and they have 2:05 on the peloton currently 'No attack, no party' – Tadej Pogačar chooses diplomacy at Giro d'Italia Slovenian suggests pressure from peloton persuaded UAE to let break go on stage 10 Over the top and now time for the riders to head down the gradual halting descent towards the coast and the flat roads to the finish A kilometre to go to the first intermediate climb of the stage 1:55 for the breakaway trio as they approach Casacalenda The three men roll through the sprint while further back the sprinters jump from the head of the peloton It's the US team vs Alpecin-Deceuninck for the five points in fourth place Jonathan Milan easily wins the sprint to grab those extra points Milan's five points and Groves' four mean the Italian now has 179 points to the Australian's 126 Tim Merlier is in third place on 100 points More downhill racing now as the riders continue the path to the Adriatic coast Milan among his Lidl-Trek teammates in the peloton and Van Dijke really have no chance of staying away here but they'll battle on for as long as possible despite there being little left to fight for on the stage It's felt like a long day already and we're not at the halfway mark yet.. The gap to the break has come down in recent kilometres There's no rush for the sprint teams to catch the break though They'd only be opening the race up to more attacks if they brought the move back far from the finish It's still Soudal-QuickStep and Lidl-Trek at the front of the peloton Luke Plapp also doing some work at the front 'It's always nice to put on a show' – Antonio Tiberi's attacks earn kudos from Pogačar as he aims to break Italy's Giro d'Italia podium drought Vincenzo Nibali backs home hope's podium prospects as he moves closer to white jersey On the flatlands by the Adriatic coast now and it's like this all the way to the line Nice views as the riders headed through the hills earlier on today As we close in on the finish, find out how to watch the 2024 Giro d'Italia with our comprehensive guide The pace has upped in the peloton and the gap is now under a minute The Intergiro intermediate sprint is coming up next in around 10km Puncture for Caleb Ewan but he's back up and running Rod Ellingworth - 'Ineos Grenadiers Giro d'Italia team are riding superbly well' Former team manager turned Tour of Britain director briefly present on the Giro d'Italia Bike change for Rafał Majka and he gets back to the peloton quickly 51 seconds for the break as the peloton knock the pace off a little Champion leads the two Visma men over the Intergiro sprint for the 12 Groves outpaces Merlier and Fiorelli in the peloton to take 5 points Some news coming up away from the Giro d'Italia.. Mathieu van der Poel won't ride Olympic MTB event, puts full focus on road race and Tour de France will target stages and help Jasper Philipsen at the Tour de France ICYMI: Risk of avalanches forces Giro d'Italia to cut the Stelvio Pass from stage 16 Umbrail Pass becomes the new Cima Coppi as race heads into Switzerland to avoid snow-covered summit They're just hanging out there at the moment Still too early to bring them back for the peloton They started out in the region of Campania down south and they'll finish in Abruzzo up in the centre of Italy Alpecin-Deceuninck joining in at the front now along with Soudal-QuickStep Plapp leading the way on the flat roads towards Francavilla al Mare We're all waiting for the finishing sprint It's been hovering around that mark for a while One more intermediate sprint to go in just over 7km The peloton are upping the pace now though That came back quickly and the three breakaway men are caught And now the peloton is all together for the sprint Ryan Mullen nips out of the peloton to take three bonus seconds while it was Geraint Thomas who takes second place and two bonus seconds Mullen was protecting Dani Martínez's second place overall Thomas has cut the gap from 18 seconds to 16 seconds there though Mikkel Bjerg was third to take one bonus second There should be a high pace to the end now Intermarché-Wanty are up there among the other sprint squads at the front of the peloton Sram Red AXS Review: Excellent braking and improved shifting in a lighter overall package Sram has done an excellent job with Red AXS and there are big improvements in several areas but the included computer may frustrate some Winner of the last bunch sprint of the Giro He left the race ahead of yesterday's tenth stage and Kaden Groves are all still in the race and Giovanni Lonardi are also still in the race and will be mixing it up in the sprint Blue jersey wearer Simon Geschke stops for a bike change He's holding the KOM jersey with classification leader Tadej Pogačar in pink The GC teams are hoping to keep their leaders safe on this run to the finish Attacks at the front on a small rise in the road Andrea Piccolo (EF Education-EasyPost) leads the way Felix Großschartner (UAE Team Emirates) and Kevin Vermaerke (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) are on the grass verge He's caught after a short foray off the front and the peloton is all back together Großschartner is further back after getting checked out by the doctors The peloton heading towards the finish today Bora-Hansgrohe and Polti-Kometa are up front in the peloton Groupama-FDJ also up there with the peloton spread across the road 70kph at the front as the riders head down a small descent after that little climb a few kilometres ago Into the final run towards Francavilla al Mare Here's a shot of Piccolo during his brief attack not so long ago The sprint trains are organising themselves at the front now Alpecin-Deceuninck and UAE Team Emirates also move up on the outside UAE now driving it with two men ahead of Pogačar Ineos Grenadiers now shifting up to keep Thomas safe The British team are at the front as the road narrows towards a right-hand turn Ineos continue to lead with QuickStep behind But now it's Jayco taking it up as Ineos drop away.s Alpecin-Deceuninck move up into the final kilometre Van Lerberghe launches it with Merlier in his wheel It's Merlier vs Milan as the Belgian leads the way into the final metres A fast sprint in slow motion due to the headwind as Milan pulls alongside Merlier The maglia ciclamino gets past at the death Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) wins stage 11 of the Giro d'Italia That was a messy sprint finish into the headwind who extends his points lead in the process He's the top sprinter so far at this year's Giro d'Italia Milan celebrates his win as he crosses the line He beat Merlier and Kaden Groves to the line Giovanni Lonardi and Laurence Pithie rounded out the top five well clear of Groves on 156 in second place That's three career Giro stage wins for Milan now 🔻 A very hectic final kilometer, with a massive crash in the middle of the sprint, but a pure display of sheer power from the fastest man of this race⏮ The @Continentaltire Ultimo Kilometro ⤵️#GirodItalia#LastKm | #Continental #ContinentalItalia #SafetySponsorOfTheRoad pic.twitter.com/JhCn08YQ3IMay 15, 2024 Giro d'Italia: Jonathan Milan outpowers Merlier in stage 11 sprint victory Milan pips Soudal-Quickstep rider as Jakobsen caught in a crash in final hundred metres Looking at the overhead view of the sprint Molano was left with nowhere to go up against the barriers by Merlier who did look to move right as he opened the sprint Here's what Jonathan Milan had to say after his win today.. "It's not just this 20-second sprint or the victory in the end that made me happy It was all the work the guys did today to support me and bring me to the crucial position for the sprint I think today it's just unbelievable what the guys did for me today I have to say thanks from the bottom of my heart for this "Merlier is always tricky to predict in the final and how to move It was a tricky final with some corners and a straight finish It was more difficult to manage this than a normal one with some corners really strong but then I tried to make mine and it went good "It's really special [to win in the points jersey] Last year I was always close and doing some mistakes I think the most important thing is to learn from the mistakes and go further We made it with the team and I'm proud of this." Tadej Pogačar is back in pink tonight Meanwhile maglia ciclamino holder Milan celebrates his stage win Pogačar also holds the blue climber's jersey News just in – Tim Merlier has been relegated from second place after he moved across the road in the finishing sprint Kaden Groves and Giovanni Lonardi now join Milan on the stage 11 podium Antonio Tiberi is our final jersey holder of the day That concludes the podium ceremony for stage 11 We'll have news and reaction from the stage coming in through the evening But that's all for the live coverage of stage 11 Come back tomorrow for more from stage 12 to Fano Giro d'Italia Stage 11 Highlights: Jonathan Milan sprints to second win of 2024 race Milan praises 'unbelievable, real team' Lidl-Trek after Stage 11 sprint win 'We need to find some weaknesses somewhere!' - Is Pogacar ill? AdvertisementHow was your experience today? Please note that this is an automated translation and it will not be perfect. All articles have been written in English and if anything appears to not make sense, please double check in English. A look at the route and a few fantasy favorites for stage 11 of the Giro d'Italia. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. The action you just performed triggered the security solution. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. A headwind does not deter the Giro points leader from taking another stage win. May 15, 2024: Foiano di Valfortore to Francavilla al Mare, 207km If a break isn't formed there, then the downhill run and deceptively tough category 3 climb at Pietracatella (8.4km at 5.4%) will be another great opportunity in the opening 50km of the stage. This is the only categorised test of the day and should see the likes of Simon Geschke (Cofidis) and Lilian Calmejane (Intermarché-Wanty) trying to get into the move to extend their points tallies.  From then on in, it's a mainly downhill run to the midpoint of the 207km route before a mainly flat finale from Termoli, heading north up the Adriatic east coast up to the finish in Francavilla al Mare. The first intermediate sprint of the day comes 74.5km in at Cascalenda with the Intergiro at San Salvo Marina and the bonus seconds sprint coming 34.5km from the line in Fossacesia Marina.  If a breakaway is to make it to the line for the second successive day at the 2024 Giro d'Italia, the it will have to be comprised of strong rouleurs to survive the flat run up the coast.  After a big fight for the break on stage 10 and the summit finish to go with, tired legs could mean for less riders trying their luck and the majority of teams wanting to wait it out for another bunch sprint finish.   If the stage finishes in a sprint then expect the likes of stage 3 winner Tim Merlier (Soudal-QuickStep) and stage 4 Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) to be among the favourites but after taking his maiden Grand Tour win into Naples on Sunday, Olav Kooij (Visma-Lease a Bike) won't play a part due to abandoning the race with a fever ahead of stage 10.  Also in line to challenge a possible sprint could be Caleb Ewan (Jayco AlUla), Fabio Jakobsen and Tobias Lund Andresen (DSM-Firmenich PostNL), Alberto Dainese (Tudor), Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain-Victorious), Danny van Poppel (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Juan Sebastián Molano (UAE Team Emirates). The final key turn in Francavilla al Mare comes inside the final 3.5km where leadout trains will need to be in prime position before the largely straight final 3km run to the line. The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox! Cyclingnews is the world's leader in English-language coverage of professional cycling Started in 1995 by University of Newcastle professor Bill Mitchell the site was one of the first to provide breaking news and results over the internet in English The site was purchased by Knapp Communications in 1999 and owner Gerard Knapp built it into the definitive voice of pro cycling major publishing house Future PLC has owned the site and expanded it to include top features The site continues to be the most comprehensive and authoritative English voice in professional cycling Stage 11 profile and route map: Foiano di Val Fortore - Francavilla al Mare who has a string of esteemed guests joining her across the three weeks Adam Blythe and 12-time stage winner Robbie McEwen will return with former Jumbo-Visma star Nathan van Hooydonck swooping in for the final week as Blythe resumes his duties on the motorbike in Italy former road star Daniel Oss (Stages 10-14) two-time winner Alberto Contador (Stage 15) and Blythe (Stages 16-21) will be doing their thing on the back of a motorbike to bring fans closer to the action 'The modern Eddy Merckx' – Vaughters on Pogacar's star turn in Giro sprint AdvertisementHow was your experience today The week of Roland Garros qualifying gives the lower-ranked players a space to shine on the Challenger Tour Roberto Carballes Baena was so much better than the rest of the field at Tunis though and cleaned it up rather comfortably Matteo Arnaldi won his maiden Challenger title in a battle of wildcards at Francavilla al Mare while Sergey Fomin became the most shocking titlist at this level in a very long time Roberto Carballes Baena was the 2nd seed in Tunis, but only he and Jordan Thompson were ranked in the top 250 (due to Roland Garros qualifying). The Australian was eliminated early by last week’s Zagreb champion so the Spaniard had a chance to clean up the tournament against opponents of a slightly lower class than he’s used to Carballes Baena lost the first set he played this week against Raul Brancaccio but he dropped just twelve games in the eight Michael Geerts had four set points against him in set one Gijs Brouwer had a great run to Houston (ATP 250) quarterfinals a month ago The Dutchman had only reached the last eight stage at a Challenger in his life though (Knoxville 2019) The lefty was able to advance to the final in Tunis without dropping a single set winning a tie-break each against Maxime Janvier and Aldin Setkic His most impressive victory came in the semifinals as he comfortably defeated the aforementioned Misolic 6-2 6-2 just like most of Carballes Baena’s matches this week The Spaniard has been at the “a bit too good for Challengers a bit too weak for the ATP Tour” phase for years now but he’s extremely consistent and won’t go below a certain level His solid defense is way too much for lower-ranked players to handle and as he outranked everyone he played in Tunis by at least 164 places he was able to win his 9th Challenger title by beating Brouwer 6-1 6-1 The Spaniard will now try to take the momentum and confidence from Tunis to Roland Garros where he’s facing Oscar Otte in the opening round Brouwer wants to play qualifying at Surbiton on grass (second week of the French Open) The Dutchman is now ranked high enough to have a great shot at making Wimbledon qualifying Robin Haase has been suffering from a steady decline with his last Challenger title coming all the way back in 2016 (Sibiu) The Dutchman has always been a great altitude player though (won both his ATP Tour trophies in Kitzbuhel) and he managed to pick his form up this week losing only two sets on the way to the final both to Romanians (Filip Cristian Jianu and Nicholas David Ionel) This was a welcome change especially as in the first event at Shymkent Haase went out to Ergi Kirkin in round one Fomin kept proving that while the draw in Shymkent wasn’t the strongest Haase tried to keep the rallies short and was helped by his bigger serve and forehand combination but the Uzbek stood strong even after losing an advantage of a break in the opener and having to clinch it in the tie-break Whether it was due to some physical reasons you couldn’t really tell despite not being able to keep this style up Fomin looked more comfortable in the second set The Uzbek will jump over 400 ranking spots to being on the verge of entering the world’s fourth-best hundred (his career-high used to be 576) He is signed up to play a 15K in Antalya next week but maybe the ranking leap and huge success will change his plans Haase wants to play qualifying at Surbiton or Forli during the second week of Roland Garros Fomin is the 3rd lowest-ranked Challenger Tour champion of the 21st century (see tweet below): He's the 3rd lowest-ranked CH champion in the 21st century!874 – Stricker Lugano 2021848 – Luxa Istanbul 2002838 – FOMIN SHYMKENT 2022 Fomin actually had a very tough run – had to beat both finalists from the 1st event (Nava and Fanselow) — Damian Kust (@damiankust) May 21, 2022 Francesco Maestrelli was also a wildcard, but the 19-year-old had never even won a main draw match at a Challenger. He was originally supposed to face the top seed, Nicolas Moreno de Alboran, right away, but after the American withdrew, he got to play Oleksii Krutykh, which didn’t really make his job any easier. Maestrelli came back from a set down three times (against Krutykh, Billy Harris, and Mattias Bourgue), before straight-setting Alexis Galarneau to make his maiden final. Arnaldi’s ranking should now grant him a spot in Wimbledon qualifying. Maestrelli is on the verge of entering the top 400. Both finalists received special exempts to the main draw at Vicenza next week. As the world’s best hundred will be competing at the 2022 Roland Garros, there are no top 100 players in action. The WTA Italian Open has begun play. Last Word On Sports is back with more action in our best bets column. Do you like our It promises to be an exciting opening day of WTA Rome action. Ten matches are scheduled in total, and four of them are predicted in ATP Masters 1000 Rome 1/64-Finals Diallo – Giron: Time TBA H2H: first meeting Gabriel Diallo has won four of his last five matches. Last week taking his second win of the Giro d'Italia in a chaotic sprint finale.Jonathan Milan of Italy and Team Lidl - Trek - Purple Points Jersey celebrates at finish line as stage winner during the 107th Giro d'Italia 2024 Stage 11 a 207km stage from Foiano di val Fortore to Francavilla al mare (Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images) Credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España.Get the latest with our sport podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.Watch on SBS SportSport News Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon The best of Time Out straight to your inbox We help you navigate a myriad of possibilities Sign up for our newsletter for the best of the city By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news Sign up for our email to enjoy your city without spending a thing (as well as some options when you’re feeling flush) By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. Worldwide Chances are, you’ve got into cycling at some point over the past few years. Cheap, healthy and quicker than public transport? There are definitely a lot of positives. And it’s not just a great way to get around cities: it’s a lovely way to spend a holiday, too.Enter the Via Verde dei Trabocchi. This brand-new cycle route is being built on an old railway line along Italy’s Adriatic coast That means the 42-kilometre path will remain mercifully flat as it winds down from Francavilla al Mare to the charming city of Vasto Along the way, you can expect to take in historic ports, quaint fishing villages, unspoilt beaches, loads of places to grab good food, and all sorts of wildlife, too. Appropriately, cycling fans can also find the Museo Marco Pantani (dedicated to the legendary road racer) in nearby Cesenatico Keen to give it a go? The Via Verde dei Trabocchi is due to open in spring 2022 – and you can find out more here While we’re here: have you heard about this epic bike path that will let you cycle all the way around Lake Garda Thanks for subscribing! Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon! tiktokfacebooktwitteryoutubeAbout us Contact us Italy’s Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) won the 11th stage of the Giro d’Italia on Wednesday in a messy bunch sprint in Francavilla al Mare It was the track specialist’s second victory on this Giro having already taken the honours on stage 4 After an easy day heading north along the Adriatic coast all of the sprint and general classification contenders  were involved in the long straight final sprint into a headwind.   A nasty crash left several riders on the ground in the final kilometre but in the sprint to the line Milan broke off Tim Merlier’s wheel bursting through to notch his fifth win of the season.  It was a reversal of stage 3 when Soudal Quick-Step’s Belgian rider Merlier took the victory ahead of Milan Alpecin’s Australian rider Kaden Groves was third across the line.  Slovenian Tadej Pogacar retains the leader’s pink jersey with an unchanged lead of 2min 40sec over Colombian Daniel Martinez Welshman Geraint Thomas is a further 16sec back in third overall.  Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa The head of South American football’s governing body CONMEBOL called on FIFA to expand.. UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said on Thursday it would be “a bad idea” for.. The United States is the sole bidder for the 2031 Women’s World Cup Mauritian rider Kim Le Court sprung a surprise on Sunday by becoming the first African.. Two-time champion Jonas Vingegaard said on Thursday he has turned his focus to the.. The town of Ħaż-Żebbuġ roared to life last Sunday as it hosted the inaugural.. Cycling superstar Tadej Pogacar was mobbed at a gala Saturday ahead of his much-awaited.. consisting of Stephen Grima and Brandon Sultana Colombian doctor Fredy Gonzales Torres was given a six-month suspended sentence and fined 15000.. Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana will all involve 23.. The Malta Mountain Bike Association hosted the third and final race of the 2025.. Fixture: (8) Ethan Quinn vs (2) Tristan Schoolkate Northbay Healthcare Men's Pro Championships Ethan Quinn will take on Tristan Schoolkate in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Fairfield Challenger on Saturday The match will be played at the Zimmerman Court where Quinn will enjoy the support of his home crowd against the Australian Quinn was victorious against Rudy Quan in three sets and Carl Emil Overbeck in straight sets earlier at the tournament He has been seeded eighth and is one of the youngest players After failing to make it to the main draw at the US Open Quinn participated in three Challenger tournaments in Columbus His campaign in all three tournaments was halted within the first two rounds as he looks to pick up momentum in Fairfield Schoolkate, on the other hand, is the second seed at Fairfield and has defeated Alexey Zakharov and Bruno Kuzuhara, both in straight sets in the earlier rounds at the venue. He reached the second round at the US Open, losing to Jakub Mensik in a five-set battle He has also participated in all the same venues as Quinn since then and has been unable to cruise further than the second rounds The quarterfinal promises a closely contested match Both players have been in similar shape in the last twelve months Quinn has won 51% of matches and Schoolkate 56% Quinn and Schoolkate have met on one occasion before this fixture The American loves playing from the baseline where he can easily use his forehand to his advantage and make his opponents run for points the Australian is a counterpuncher who thrives on using his competitor's pace against them Quinn possesses more raw power when it comes to dominating the game and has a bigger serve than Schoolkate he also thrives playing from the back and defending until his opponents make an error Schoolkate may adopt a more strategic approach in dealing with Quinn's power by using his accuracy and unpredictability Schoolkate is the favorite to move to the next round He has also played against slightly better opposition (average rank of 286) than Quinn (average rank of 265) gaining more advantage of maintaining his composure under pressure Pick - Tristan Schoolkate wins in three sets Your perspective matters!Start the conversation The Abruzzo coast is dotted with many beaches and calette all beautiful and has some very beautiful sandy beaches Among the most famous are the beaches of Pescara There are many reasons why sandy beaches can be an attractive choice for beach holidays sandy beaches are a popular choice for beach holidays because they offer comfort sunbathing opportunities and an unspoilt natural environment © 2025 by Viaggiando Italia - Web Marketing Solutions P IVA 02583850694 - Tutti i diritti riservati © 2025 by Viaggiando Italia - Web Marketing Solutions P IVA 02583850694 - Tutti i diritti riservati.