Arnaud Démare claimed his second win in this Giro d’Italia by taking the sixth stage in another mass sprint. João Almeida held on to the pink jersey despite a mid-stage scare when another rider crashed into him.
To claim his 12th victory this season, Démare stayed lingered in a small bunch after a short climb, then started his sprint before anyone else on the slightly uphill finishing straight, eventually winning easily ahead of Michael Matthews and Fabio Felline.
“It was amazing. The climb was really hard and I dropped a few positions down in the bunch but I came back in the short descent,” said Démare. “I stayed in the wheels, did not brake to move a few positions up and then I gave everything I had in the sprint.”
The riders needed nearly five hours to complete the 188km (117-mile) route from Castrovillari to Matera, which featured one third-category climb and a hilly finish.
After being hit with 37km to go, Almeida had to stop at the side of the road to fix the radio under his jersey. Sprinter Fernando Gaviria went down in the same incident, but both riders quickly got going again.
Seiclo
(@SeicloS4C)🚴♂️ Giro d’Italia 2020
Cymal 6 | Stage 6https://t.co/iN5CNUNEBODamwain i Joao Almeida yn y peloton!
A crash for Joao Almeida, the wearer of the maglia rosa, in the peloton after having issues with his radio!#Giro pic.twitter.com/rux3Q7GAkN
Almeida, a Portuguese rider with the Deceuninck-Quick Step team, remains 43 seconds clear of Spanish rider Pello Bilbao on the general classification.
French champion Démare, of the Groupama-FDJ team, also won stage four in a three-way photo finish. This was Démare’s third career win at the Giro. He also won a stage in Modena last year, to go with his two stage victories at the Tour de France in 2017 and 2018.
Four riders formed an early breakaway and established a lead of more than 10 minutes on the peloton before being reeled back in. James Whelan was the last of the breakaway riders to be caught, with 14km to go.
Friday’s stage seven is a mostly flat 143km leg from Matera to Brindisi and also sets up well for the sprinters.