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Stage 15 Neutralized Over Potholes; Lavik Wins, Zanoncello Expelled

5/26/2026

Summary

Vingegaard Calls Neutralisation

The jury set GC times 15 km from the finish on stage 15 in Milan after riders reported potholes and tram tracks.
Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) urged neutralisation of stage times, saying safety is a shared duty of the UCI, organisers, riders and teams.
Enrico Zanoncello (VF Group-Bardiani) was expelled, fined 1,000 CHF and yellow-carded for head-butting.
Fredrik Dversnes Lavik (Uno-X) won the stage, with Paul Magnier (Soudal-QuickStep) finishing fifth 57 seconds later.

Summary

Giro Trades

Critics say the Giro's overseas “Big Start” in Bulgaria traded sport for TV revenue.
The absence of Tadej Pogacar, João Almeida, Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel left the race without a “fuoriclasse”.
Organisers kept early overseas stages easy and later Italian stages short, sacrificing a quarter of the race for PR.
The flat sprint into Milan was called a “snooze fest”, reflecting fan disappointment with bland routes.

Summary

Dversnes Wins Giro

Fredrik Dversnes became the first Norwegian to win a Giro stage since Edvald Boasson Hagen in 2009.
The victory gave Uno-X Mobility its first Giro stage win in the team's debut Grand Tour.
The 157-km stage was completed at 51.3 km/h, making it the second-fastest road stage in Giro history.
The win gave Uno-X Mobility its first points classification points, putting the team in early contention for the blue jersey.

History

Historical Context

On 16 May 1998 the 81st Giro d’Italia opened with a prologue in Nice, its first start on French soil and the sixth foreign departure since the race first left Italy in 1965. The 18-team, 162-rider event—won by Marco Pantani—showed how overseas launches could boost tourism, a model that still shapes route and safety debates today.

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Vingegaard Calls Neutralisation

The jury set GC times 15 km from the finish on stage 15 in Milan after riders reported potholes and tram tracks.
Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) urged neutralisation of stage times, saying safety is a shared duty of the UCI, organisers, riders and teams.
Enrico Zanoncello (VF Group-Bardiani) was expelled, fined 1,000 CHF and yellow-carded for head-butting.
Fredrik Dversnes Lavik (Uno-X) won the stage, with Paul Magnier (Soudal-QuickStep) finishing fifth 57 seconds later.

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