Marcel Kittel and Unibet Rose Rockets self-critical after Groenewegen Giro crash

Day one of the Giro d'Italia is done — and for Dylan Groenewegen and Unibet Rose Rockets, it has sadly not been sealed with a pink jersey. The team's sprint leader went down in the final kilometre, and crucially, he was in a position he should never have been in. Positioning specialist Matyas Kopecky and sprint coach Marcel Kittel sat down with IDL Pro Cycling to debrief.

First and most importantly: Groenewegen is okay under the circumstances. "After the initial medical checks, no urgent issues were identified. A further check will be carried out at the hotel," the Rockets confirmed. The Amsterdam-born sprinter escaped the crash without any road rash or similar injuries.

Kittel knows from years of experience that these things can go either way. "I don't enjoy this, but it is part of the sport. It is what it is, and there can only be one winner on a day like this. Paul Magnier put in a strong sprint off a good lead-out, so they did their job well," says the generous German.

The Rockets spent the entire day working at the front of the peloton, with Hartthijs de Vries doing the lion's share. "It was incredibly easy all day. We expected to have to push a bit more, but that wasn't the case. We knew beforehand that this can happen on the first day of a Grand Tour," says Kopecky.

Kittel and the team had marked the key point at 3.6 kilometres from the finish as the critical moment for positioning. "We were well-placed at the important point 3.6 kilometres from the line, but we dropped back from there — and that's precisely why we got caught up in the crash."

"In the final 3.5 kilometres we needed to be at the front, because the road was getting narrower and narrower," Kopecky explains. "That's where things didn't go quite right for us. Niklas (Larsen — Ed.) did a good turn on the front, after which it was my job. But Kubis came over me on the bridge, which was actually far too early — because I still had more to give. That made things a bit chaotic, because we had to switch positions again."

Groenewegen, meanwhile, had also lost his train. "I didn't see much of that — I can't look behind me," says Kopecky. "That's something we'll need to dig into, I think. And learn from after the analysis," Kittel adds.

That the sprint leader went down precisely where the road narrowed is not something Kittel is willing to use as an excuse. "It was still five metres wide. Of course six or eight metres is better — but crashes happen on those roads too. It was also a very easy day, and there are many more things you could open a discussion about — as you could also see at the Scheldeprijs."

"I look at other things beyond how the finale was laid out," says the experienced sprinter. "Day one of twenty-one is done. You always hope for a good start and not a crash, but that is simply what happened today. We were focused and I have no doubt the boys desperately wanted it. We need to pick ourselves up and get back on it."