Race leader Vingegaard spoke to the jury on behalf of the peloton: 'There wasn't a moment I felt safe'

With the surprise result, and the grumblings from the sprint teams that followed, it would be easy to overlook the fact that the fifteenth stage of the Giro d'Italia had already taken an unusual turn before all of that. Once the race arrived in Milan, riders began raising serious safety concerns. Race leader Jonas Vingegaard went to the race jury — and it worked. The Dane from Visma | Lease a Bike, and the rest of the peloton, got what they asked for.

It began with Victor Campenaerts, who approached the jury vehicle. At that moment, Enric Mas hit the deck, and the Belgian gestured emphatically: do you see what can happen? The riders made clear they felt the circuit was unsafe. Vingegaard, along with Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek), then put their case to the officials — and the jury acted: GC times would be taken at the start of the final lap, with one full circuit still to race.

That allowed the GC riders, and anyone else with no interest in the pushing and shoving of a sprint, to ride in at their own pace. "I think I spent more time at the red car than at my own team car," Vingegaard laughed, speaking to CyclingPro.net. "I think we all as riders felt that today's circuit was not the safest. I talked to a lot of riders, and we agreed we had to try something. That's why I went to the red car."

Vingegaard raised several issues with the jury. On television, barriers along the course were mentioned, but there was more to it than that. Afterwards, the Dane was above all grateful that officials were willing to listen. "They were willing to meet us halfway, they listened well. As riders we also have to thank the jury."

What exactly was wrong with the circuit? "In general, the road was not in its best condition — there were a lot of holes in the road, constantly. There was not a moment where I felt safe enough to grab a bidon or take a gel. There were a lot of tram rails, and it was very bumpy going over them. In general, we as a peloton felt that they could have done better, but it's good that they listened to us."

All's well that ends well, then. Vingegaard stayed out of trouble and heads into the final week of the Giro d'Italia with a reassuring lead. "It's a nice gap I have — I'm happy with it. There are still a lot of stages to come, and the third week is the hardest. You can only say you've won when you're in Rome."