Robert Gesink (Blanco) found himself cursing Murphy’s Law at the end of today’s 16th stage of the Giro d’Italia, as an unshipped chain denied him the chance of competing for the victory. The Dutchman had latched onto an attack by Tanel Kangert (Astana) and was heading into the final two kilometres with the Estonian champion, along with Przemyslaw Niemiec (Lampre-Merida) and Beñat Intxausti (Movistar).
On the cobbles of Ivrea, however, Gesink suddenly stopped and pulled over to the side of the road as his chain was bounced off and became stock in his rear derailleur, and the other three continued to contest the stage.
“I’ve never experienced anything like this before”, Gesink said immediately after the race. “To have this happen after 236 kilometres, just two short of the end – it must be Murphy’s law. My chain derailed on the cobble and blocked my wheel. I was riding full out for the stage win and felt very good.
“Anything could have happened, but going out in this manner is a big disappointment even though it did show I am back in form.”
To add insult to injury the race jury did not recognise that Gesink had been denied by a mechanical fault and he was given his finishing time at the end of the stage, instead of that of stage winner Intxausti, with whom he had been when the incident happened. With Yuriy Trofimov (Katusha) and Robert Kiserlovski (RadioShack-Leopard) both suffering a bad day, Gesink does have the consolation of moving up from 13th to 12th overall - although he only takes one place after having been overtaken by Kangert - and will doubtless be looking to move into the top ten in the coming mountain stages.