"We'll try it every day": a different Arensman announces his Giro ambitions in Innsbruck

It almost worked. INEOS Grenadiers came within a handful of metres of stealing stage one of the Tour of the Alps on Monday. The man at the heart of the move left Innsbruck with plenty of reasons to be optimistic, even without the stage win.

Thymen Arensman is 26 years old and knows this race well. He has ridden the Tour of the Alps three times in the past four seasons — finishing third in 2022, then winning a stage and placing second overall in 2025. Monday's stage felt like the opening move of a campaign with real intent. His target is the Giro d'Italia in May — and the signals on day one were encouraging.

With the day's breakaway caught on the final climb and a sprint looming among riders who are not sprinters, INEOS decided to force the issue. As the peloton swept into the winding streets of Innsbruck, they hit the front collectively, targeting a short uphill drag inside the final four kilometres. Arensman sat in second wheel. When the pace peaked over the crest, two teammates sat up to create a gap — and Arensman rocketed off the front.

It was a sound gamble. With no pure sprinters in the race, a solo attacker with two kilometres to go had a genuine chance. Tudor and Pinarello-Q36.5, riding for Florian Stork and Tom Pidcock respectively, saw the danger and chased hard.

They pulled Arensman back in the final metres, setting up the sprint that Tommaso Dati (UKYO) ultimately won — beating Pidcock to the line. Dati had already proved his ability in sprints without true sprinters earlier this season, winning a bunch finish at the Coppi e Bartali in similar fashion.

Arensman was collateral damage in a move that had deserved better. "They went so hard," he said of the chase afterwards.

Despite the outcome, the mood at INEOS was upbeat. Arensman spoke to IDL Pro Cycling after the finish — lean, sharp, and in noticeably good condition. The rider who has sometimes needed time to find his legs in the opening days of a stage race looked hungry from the gun on Monday. He was on the front foot, willing to gamble, and nearly pulling it off solo. Both literally and figuratively, a different face.

"We tried something and it almost worked, so we'll keep trying that every day," he said. He was reluctant to call it a pre-planned move, despite the evident coordination from INEOS in those final kilometres. "I like to ride on instinct, and it felt like the right moment. This was a good first day — the training has clearly been working."

Giro ambition sits behind everything this week. Arensman has unfinished business in Italy. Last year he arrived in excellent form only to lose time on the very first day in a way that was becoming a pattern. This season feels different. He is racing with authority rather than caution, and the team around him is willing to take risks in service of that.