Jasper Schoofs of Soudal Quick-Step holds of peloton to win Giro Next Gen stage 3 and pink jersey
CyclingTuesday, 16 June 2026 at 17:22
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Follow us on GoogleJasper Schoofs has won stage three of the Giro Next Gen. The Belgian rider from the Soudal Quick-Step development team won the sprint among his fellow breakaway riders after a day out front. The peloton came agonisingly close in an exciting finale, but left it too late to contest the win. Schoofs is also the new pink jersey holder in the U23 version of the Giro d'Italia.
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After an immediately demanding mountain stage on day one and a bunch sprint on stage two, the peloton in Italy was served up another tough day. Over the course of 166 kilometres, the young talents in this 'Baby Giro' had to take on more than 3,000 metres of climbing, with a finish immediately after a descent.
The climbing began right from the start. The first serious ascent, however, only came after around thirty kilometres — the Valico di Campotenese (9km at 5%). After that, flat kilometres were simply off the menu: if the road wasn't heading downhill, the riders were climbing.
A strong breakaway group duly formed. It included two Belgian riders: Matteo Vanhuffel (Picnic-PostNL development team) and Jasper Schoofs (Soudal Quick-Step development team). The two Flemish riders were joined by Simone Zanini (XDS Astana Development) and Diego Casagrande (Tudor U23). The quartet built a maximum lead of around three minutes.
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A thinned-out peloton closes in, break plays poker
The race finale exploded on the final climb, the Viggiano (5.4km at 5.5%). After a six-kilometre descent, just a flat seven kilometres remained to the finish in Villa d'Agri di Marsicovetere. With 2.5 kilometres still to go to the summit, the pace was too high for pink jersey holder Davide Donati (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe Rookies). A new race leader was on the way.
At the same time, the breakaway was still fighting out front, with a thinned-out peloton of around thirty riders sitting just under a minute behind. Much of that gap was not eaten into, keeping the escapees' chances very much alive. With ten kilometres to go, the lead of the breakaway group — now without the dropped Casagrande — was still thirty seconds.
In the final kilometres, the breakaway had the luxury of being able to play a bit of poker. Schoofs went into his sprint in an excellent position and rewarded a strong day's racing with victory. In the background, Daan Dijkman from the UAE development team came dangerously close to a podium finish, but his very powerful sprint was only enough for fourth place.
Results of Stage 3 of the 2026 Giro NextGen
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
David Bavin-HobbsChief Editor
David has been working in the sports & cycling industry for 16 years. Covering racing, business and technology, he has worked in communications for cycling companies, teams, and as a journalist. His proudest achievement is winning the first bike race he ever entered. He hasn't won a race since.
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