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The next obstacle of the day is the climb of the Muro di Ca’ del Poggio. It’s a tough one, short but sharp it’s one kilometre at an average gradient of 11.5%.
The top is 89.1km from the finish, and we can expect the breakaway’s lead to drop a litttle once the pelton are over it.
Sara Luccon (Top Girls-Fassa Bortolo) won the day’s intermediate sprint.
It’s a fast old day out there, the average speed is 42.9km/h.
La Bella, De Vallier, Luccon lead Hashimi, Serena and Nelson by 2.06 and the peloton by 6.28.
110km to go
As stage one was, today’s stage might be flat, but there are challenges in the mountains coming up.
From a mountain time trial to the first visit to an iconic climb – Analysing the key stages of the Giro d’Italia Women.
Either the timing is out or Hashimi, Serena and Nelson are losing ground again, their deficit is back out to 1.45.
With such a huge lead over the pelton, there is a case for the leaders easing off a little and allowing the chasing group to catch them, with six at the front they might have a chance.
This gap really is a huge one.
Eleonora La Bella (AromItalia Vaiano), Elisa de Vallier (Top Girls-Fassa Bortolo) and Sara Luccon (Top Girls-Fassa Bortolo) lead the pelton by six minutes, with Fariba Hashimi (Vini Fantini-BePink), Girogia Serena (Medelspeck-E Work) and Josie Nelson (Picnic-PostNL) at 1.18.
120km to go
Before we head for the hill, there’s an intermediate sprint coming up first.
It’s on a straight piece of road with 110km to go in the village of Cimadolmo.
Thankfully there are no roundabouts to put it on like yesterday’s sprint.
The leaders’ advantage is now almost five minutes on the peloton, while the chasing trio remain around 1.25 behind.
The peloton seem happy with the two breakaways up the road.
They’ve allowed La Bella, De Vallier, Luccon a lead of 4.10, while Hashimi, Serena and Nelson are 1.27 behind the leaders and losing ground very slightly.
130km to go
The leaders have raced 16km.
La Bella, De Vallier, Luccon lead the peloton by 1.25.
Hashimi and Serena have been caught by Nelson and they trail the leaders by 42 seconds. Nelson has a big engine and could well help them get to the front.
140km to go
As it stands La Bella, De Vallier, Luccon lead Hashimi and Serena by 42 seconds, with Nelson at 1.05 and the peloton at 1.25.
And another chaser is in on the action now, Josie Nelson (Picnic-PostNL) is just behind Hashimi and Serena.
There’s a pair of chasers though, Afghan champion, Fariba Hashimi (Vini Fantini-BePink) and Girogia Serena (Medelspeck-E Work) are bang in the middle of the gap.
After a frantic start we have three riders up the road.
Eleonora La Bella (AromItalia Vaiano) and the Top Girls-Fassa Bortolo pair of Elisa de Vallier and Sara Luccon are one minute head of the peloton.
If you’ve heard of today’s climb, the Muro di Ca’ del Poggio that’s because it’s featured in the Giro before.
In the 2017 race Hannah Barnes sprinted to victory in San Vendemiano, after climbing it.
And if you followed the men’s Giro it was raced last Thursday.
For today’s stage the route takes the peloton north into the very edge of the Venetian Alps for the day’s only climb. That won’t affect the race much though, as we then drop south all the way back to the coast, to Caorle, east of Venice.
We’re rolling. Today’s neutralised zone is a long one, at 10km. It’s another warm one today, with 29º forecast later in the day and once again, the chance of thunder storms.
Rolling out at 10:55CET we have 156km on the cards today, starting in Roncade, just east of Treviso before finishing in Caorle. And we’ll see the first classified climb of the race the Muro di Ca’ del Poggio.
The peloton had a late finish last night after a long transfer as we head north, the other side of Venice for another day that could well be a bunch sprint finish.
As for Lorena Wiebes, her SD Worx-Protime team are “astonished.”
Lidl-Trek’s Italian sprinter will now start the race in the leader’s maglia rosa.
“It’s not the way I want to win,” she said.
Well, it wasn’t just the racing which created the drama for yesterday’s stage.
Elisa Balsamo was declared the winner after Lorena Wiebes was ejected from the race.
Good morning, we’re back for stage 2 of the Giro d’Italia, stay with us all day for live updates.