Wiebes-free sprint is finally Balsamo’s as she takes dream win in pink jersey

The second stage of the Giro d’Italia Women was won by Elisa Balsamo. The Italian of Lidl-Trek was the fastest in the sprint in Caorle and won the stage in the pink jersey. She beat Chiara Consonni of Canyon//SRAM and Lara Gillespie of UAE Team ADQ, and this time she really was the fastest, after winning the first stage following the disqualification of Lorena Wiebes.

After just one stage, the 2026 Giro d’Italia was already destined to be unforgettable. And not for the nicest reasons: Lorena Wiebes had won the opening stage in style, but was later removed from the race because her bike was too light. SD Worx-Protime were stunned, but it made no difference: the Dutch champion did not start stage two.

With Elisa Balsamo of Lidl-Trek as the new pink jersey wearer — she had finished second behind Wiebes on Saturday — the peloton rolled out from Roncade. Another sprint opportunity was waiting. The opening phase was surprisingly nervous, with several accelerations. Eleonora La Bella of Aromitalia Vaiano, Elisa De Vallier and Sara Luccon, both of Top Girls Fassa Bortolo, managed to open a gap.

Later, Fariba Hashimi of Vini Fantini - BePink, Giorgia Serena of Mendeslpeck E-Work and Josie Nelson of Picnic PostNL also went clear from the peloton. They did not get any closer to the leaders, though: the front trio held a 2:30 advantage over the chasers, and almost six minutes over the bunch. Little happened, although there was still one obstacle halfway through the stage.

That was the Muro di Ca’ del Poggio. It is the brutally steep climb that coloured stage 18 of the Giro d’Italia in its finale, although it did not produce the expected explosion then either. With its position in this stage, 90 kilometres from the finish, no such thing could really be expected. Soon after the climb, the chasers’ race was effectively over as they were caught by the peloton.

For the escapees at the front, things also started to look increasingly difficult. Teams such as Lidl-Trek, Fenix-Premier Tech and SD Worx-Protime — even without their star rider Wiebes — began to set the pace, and the gap to the remaining trio shrank. With 20 kilometres to go, the difference was down to half a minute.

With 14 kilometres to go, it was game over for the breakaway. The peloton steadily rolled towards the finale, where another tricky last few kilometres awaited. Not because of climbs, but because of the corners in the closing kilometres. Positioning was therefore crucial. Nice to see in the finale: Demi Vollering did the work for her sprinter Ally Wollaston.

The question was: with Wiebes absent, who would win? UAE Team ADQ also put Elisa Longo Borghini to work for Lara Gillespie. She held on for a long time, but Balsamo was also delivered perfectly by Lucinda Brand. Charlotte Kool had to come from far back and went early, but it was Balsamo who really won this time, ahead of Gillespie and Consonni.