Storer shines, Rondel struggles: Tudor evaluates after Giro d’Italia time trial

If Michael Storer had been asked before the start of Tuesday’s Giro d’Italia time trial to sign off on a finish just six seconds slower than Jonas Vingegaard, he likely would have done so without hesitation. Tudor watched their Australian leader deliver a stellar performance over the 42-kilometer chrono, while seeing another team leader struggle.

Ultimately, Storer finished 15th in the stage results, which, given he was only six seconds behind Vingegaard, represents an excellent achievement. Mathys Rondel, the other GC hopeful for the Swiss team, came in 37th. The young French rider, unsurprisingly, was among the biggest losers among the general classification contenders.

Why unsurprising? The time trial was by far the longest that the 22-year-old had ever ridden. Rondel fell out of the top ten in the overall standings, now sitting 11th, 4 minutes and 45 seconds behind pink jersey wearer Afonso Eulálio.

"Today was tough, although I had no doubts it would be," said Rondel after the stage. "In the first half, I was about where I wanted to be and performed as I had hoped, but after that it became difficult to maintain pace and position on the bike, and I think I lost a lot of time there."

Despite the setback, Rondel remains focused. "Just like this entire Giro, this time trial was a learning experience for me and a new opportunity to improve in time trials. The race is still long, and there are many climbs ahead, so there’s more work to do. I’ll try to recover as best as possible for the coming days."

In contrast, Storer’s performance was strong, moving up three places to take seventh, surpassing his French teammate. "It wasn’t easy to stick to the plan—it was a bit ambitious, but also motivating," he said afterward.

"It was a very long time trial, and you don’t often face such efforts over the year, so it was a fairly unique challenge," the Australian continued. "Regardless of the result, I’m satisfied with how I executed. It wasn’t perfect, but it was very good. The race is still long. It feels like we’ve already done a lot, but many big stages are still to come."