After Landa’s horrific crash, Tiberi plays it safe in Giro time trial: "The Giro is long, it wasn’t worth the risk"

Tiberi has already proven this season that he can perform well in time trials. He placed third in the Volta ao Algarve TT and took fourth in Tirreno-Adriatico. Expectations were high, but Saturday’s course didn’t play to his strengths. Short, technical, explosive, and with very few elevation gains, exactly the kind of profile that works against him in a time trial.

“I’m actually quite satisfied with my time trial,” said the young, talented Italian afterward. “It wasn’t a course that really suited me. Lots of technical corners and an explosive rhythm, those aren’t the kind of time trials I usually feel at home in.” He also noticed along the way just how risky things could get. “I saw Edoardo Affini nearly crash, and then Luke Plapp actually did go down. When I was at the start line myself, I immediately thought about my own safety and knew I was going to take as few risks as possible.”

That decision made perfect sense, especially after Mikel Landa’s heavy crash in the opening stage, which forced the Basque rider to abandon the Giro. “I didn’t want to take risks. The Giro is still long, and this time trial was relatively short. I think I can be satisfied with my performance and with the decision to keep a cool head,” Tiberi concluded.