It is often said the first rule of attacking in a bike race is never to look back. As soon as you start stealing glances over your shoulder you're cooked, they say.
Well not always, because Aussie rider Sarah Gigante scored the biggest victory of her career at the Giro d'Italia Women on stage four despite doing exactly that – multiple times.
"I know you're not meant to look back but I kept looking back," she said, after soaring to a solo summit victory on stage four of the race. "It just seemed too good to be true."
Well it might, for she had slipped the net of the GC favourites, including Elisa Longo Borghini and Marlen Reusser, to record a memorable victory at Valdobbiadene.
Not even the combined might of last year's winner Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) and Reusser (Movistar), riding together not far behind, was able to snuff out her perfectly-timed attack, which started with 1.5km to the summit finish.
The day saw Anna Henderson (Lidl-Trek) finish nearly 10 minutes down and surrender her overall lead to Reusser, who leads Longo Borghini by 16 seconds and Gigante in third by 34.
Henderson did, however, retain the red points jersey.
Gigante has been through some tough times in recent months – forced to take the first half of this season after having surgery for iliac artery endofibrosis, and then was injured just as she returned. Today's win – the biggest of the 24-year-old's career – seemed to go some way to make up for those struggles.
"I'm really in shock," beamed a clearly over-the-moon Gigante after the stage. "I knew I had an amazing team, we saw that already in the Tour de Suisse and on stage two, but to come away with a stage win after such great teamwork all day, and all week is beyond my dreams really.
"I'm coming back from a big surgery – I had six months off – and I dislocated my shoulder just as I was coming back. So it's been a long time.
She added: "My DS was amazing on the radio, telling me to stay calm, stay calm. I tried to stay patient, which is not how I normally ride. Then when I saw Marlen go and I was feeling good… I knew I was on a good day and I thought 'maybe I'll try too'."
How it happened
The race stayed in the north of Italy for today's 142km, horseshoe-shaped stage, starting in Castello Tesino and finishing not so far away at the top of the difficult, 10.9km climb to Pianezze from Valdobbiadene, averaging 7.4%.
The stage profile was dominated by this considerable ascent, which topped out at 1,083m. But it also featured three smaller climbs – with the cat-three at Cugnan not long before halfway, and then two cat-fours in the final half: the Mura di Ca' del Poggio, and Santa Stefano.
As such it was fertile breakaway territory, capitalised on by a couple of groups of hopefuls. The most significant of these featured four riders – yesterday's winner Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) Eleonora Camilla Gasparrini (UAE Team ADQ), Alessia Vigilia (FDJ-Suez), and Lieke Nooijen (Visma-Lease a Bike).
They took off, following Wiebes's lead, at around 100km to ride, and managed to stay out front almost to the foot of the Pianezze climb, with Vigilia putting in a creditable final push to stay ahead as the chasing peloton bore down.
The climb up to Pianezze saw the main GC players come to the fore, with Reusser and Gigante both making their intentions known – the Swiss rider attacking first and the Aussie quickly chasing her down. It was then the turn of Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) to apply the pressure with a long, hard pull, serving to reduce the group considerably.
Reusser attacked again with around 3km to go and the front group was pared down even further, only Longo Borghini, Gigante and Antonia Neidermaier (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto) holding on.
It was then down to Gigante to pick her moment with just 1,500m to go. The chase behind was concerted, but it wasn't enough, and she held on for a career best win.
Results to follow...
Results
Giro d'Italia Women 2025, stage 4: Castello Tesino > Pianezze (Valdobbiadene), 142km
1. Sarah Gigante (Aus) AG Insurance-Soudal, in 3:56:22
2. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) UAE Team ADQ, +25s
3. Marlen Reusser (Swi) Movistar, at s.t.
4. Antonia Niedermaier (Ger) Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto, +34s
5. Pauliena Rooijakkers (Ned) Fenix-Deceuninck, +50s
6. Barbara Malcotti (Ita) Human Powered Health, +56s
7. Isabella Holmgren (Can) Lidl-Trek, +1:01
8. Lore De Schepper (Ger) AG Insurance-Soudal, at s.t.
9. Yara Kastelijn (Ned) Fenix-Deceuninck, +1:03
10. Urška Žigart (Slo) AG Insurance-Soudal, +1:12
General Classification after stage four
1. Marlen Reusser (Swi) Movistar, in 9:38:06
2. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) UAE Team ADQ, +16s
3. Sarah Gigante (Aus) AG Insurance-Soudal, +34s
4. Antonia Niedermaier (Ger) Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto, +1:03
5. Pauliena Rooijakkers (Ned) Fenix-Deceuninck, +1:48
6. Anna van der Breggen (Ned) SD Worx-Protime, +1:53
7. Yara Kastelijn (Ned) Fenix-Deceuninck, +1:54
8. Isabella Holmgren (Can) Lidl-Trek, +1:57
9. Lore De Schepper (Ger) AG Insurance-Soudal, +2:03
10. Katrine Aalerud (Nor) Uno-X Mobility, +2:07
