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The weather likes to play with the peloton. The riders had experienced everything since the start in Sicily: the strong wind that swept through the streets of Palermo on the first day, heavy and intense rain in the mountains like last Sunday and the sun, too. This was the case this Wednesday with 182 km between Porto Sant'Elpidio and Rimini.
Viviani hit by a motorcycle,
Consonni, 4th in the sprint
On several occasions during the stage, the Cofidis riders set the pace at the front of the race. Unfortunately, with 32 km to go, Elia Viviani was hit by one of the motorcycles following the race. The Cofidis riders then tried their best to bring their leader back into the peloton and they managed to do so with less than 10 km to go before the final line.
As a result of this incident in the race, the original plan had to be revised and it was finally Simone Consonni who fought for the victory with panache. He finished in a respectable 4th place. This young Italian, who is competing in his second Grand Tour of the season after the Tour de France, had already finished 3rd in the sprint in Lyon and thus confirms his progress. After the stage, Elia Viviani went for an X-ray to check for physical damage after his crash.
Tomorrow is another day on the road. On the program: a big loop of 204 km around Cesenatico with five 3rd and 4th category difficulties. A route that could match Stéphane Rossetto's qualities as an attacker.
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