Cannonball flies over Lake Balaton

Cavendish dominates the sprint at Balatonfured, Demare second, Gaviria third. The Englishman returns to win in the pink race, his first in 2008. Van der Poel always leader

BALATONFURED. And to say that two years ago he was on the verge of quitting, without results, motivations, after a career as a speed star, 150 races won, a Sanremo, the World Championship in 2011, an avalanche of stages in the great laps.

That he was back, and great, Mark Cavendishthe 36-year-old from the Isle of Mann, had proved it a year ago by winning the green jersey at the Tour and reaching Eddy Merckx at the top of the stage kings with 34 seals. On Sunday 8 May, however, “Cannonball” closed a circle by returning to success in the pink race, in the Italy that had adopted him at the beginning of his career in the Tuscan Quarrata.

He was the announced winner, he put the sixteenth seal in the pink race, with an imperious sprint conducted by his QuickStep and orchestrated by the Dane Michael Morkov. Yesterday we wrote to you that it is an insurance on victory to have him in the team in the last kilometers for a sprinter. One like always repeats it to us Elia Viviani: “Morki” is the best. He piloted “Cav” which with a very long sprint, starting at almost 300 meters by the lake, synonymous with great condition, nipped in the bud the ambitions of competing for real rivals with a maximum point of 74.7 km / h and a powers nearly 1300 watts. And what rivals: the French Arnaud Demare (Groupama), second, and Ferdando Gaviria (Uae), third. Fourth the Eritrean Biniam Girmay (Intermarchè), more and more reality, fifth, and first of the Italians, Jacub Marezckowith his Alpecin which also played the pink card in the sprint Mathieu Van der Poel. Seventh one of the “fab four” of the Tokyo Olympic track Simone Consonni (I trust).
«I am very happy it was the first sprint it is a great satisfaction Dancers, Vanlerberghe,“ Morki ”have done an extraordinary job», he said. Another great awaited player, the Australian, was off the radar of the sprint Caleb Ewan (Lot) e Giacomo Nizzolo (Israel). Opponents annihilated, by the reborn champion and by his team, which has no ranking men and which is therefore devoted to the phenomenon. They will repeat themselves.

Mention for Filippo Tagliani e Mattia Bais (Drone Hopper Androni) with Samuel Rivi (Eolo Kometa), left immediately after the start from Kaposvar. The first two are regulars, Bais, from Trentino, a school of courage at the Cycling Team Friuli, is already a candidate to win the prize for the best fugitive of this Giro. Once again they have taken them, rest assured that they will try again.

The Giro arrives in Sicily, for the traditionalists, who are in the majority and who do not give up on the fact that money in major sporting events is king, the real Giro starts in Italy on Tuesday.
“Vdp” Monday 9 May will do his light training on the rest day enjoying the pink jersey, which he will probably lose tomorrow, the Englishman Simon Yates (Bike Exchange) after the success in the time trial is instead the “virtual” leader among the men of the standings. Mikel Landa (Bahrain) lost the precious Jan Tratnik: the Slovenian had to raise the white flag after his fall in the final of the first stage.
And a Giro, as we know, is won also thanks to the wingmen. Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) breathe the air of home doing second youth tests. Waiting for the volcano. Yes, because tomorrow Etna, the first mountain of the Giro, will change many things.

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