By Shane Stokes
Sixth today on stage four of the Giro d’Italia, Sam Bennett has faulted himself for a split-section decision made inside the final 300 meters of the stage.
The Decathlon Ag2r La Mondiale sprinter rounded the final bend on the wheel of race leader Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) and elected to follow the Dane, but lost his wheel when Olav Kooij (Visma-Lease a Bike) momentarily impeded him.
Pedersen opened up a big lead on Bennett, with the Irishman swiftly closing back up again as he got up to full speed. His momentum was such that he would have gone past Pedersen and likely taken at least a top three finish, but the former world champion drifted right and left Bennett no space to get by.
He was forced to stop sprinting and crossed the line shaking his head in frustration.
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Speaking afterwards, he said that a hectic finale complicated things.
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“We wanted to stay together and it was super difficult. Always the first sprint of a grand tour is chaotic,” Bennett stated.
“I tried to follow the guys. Then of course we wanted Tord [leadout man Tord Gudmestad] to follow me. But I think it was very hard for us to keep together that way.
“We got into a good enough position and into the last left hand Tord came up on the inside. I should have followed him but I saw Pedersen starting to go and I thought ‘okay, I’ll follow this and hopefully it opens.’ And it never opened up.”
Bennett’s disappointment was clear in his voice. Other sprint stages follow in the Giro, including a likely bunch gallop on Thursday, but he is rueing a missed opportunity.
He didn’t seek excuses, but rather accepted he got the tactic wrong.
“It was my misjudgement, I should have followed Tord,” he said. “We said at the beginning that we would keep following each other. It never opened for me. It was my mistake.”
