Jan Bakelants finished a respectable fourth in today's stage 17 of the Giro d'Italia, but he had mixed emotions. While he was happy to have made it into the right breakaway, he was disappointed of not being able to win in Tirano. He revealed to VeloNation that it was not only the 230 kilometers with two ranked climbs that got to him.
Bakelants sat down after the race on the sidewalk, trying to cool off after another hot day in Italy. "After already spending 200 kilometers in a break on the Zoncolan stage, I was tired," the Omega Pharma-Lotto rider said. Bakelants tried hard to stay in contact with Diego Ulissi, Pablo Lastras and Giovanni Visconti in the sprint to the line, but he was unable to come around the trio.
Bakelants had the right instinct to join the move of the day. "I knew that the break was going to stay away," he said. The 25-year-old had been active in this Giro so far and on the stage to Gardeccia/Val di Fassa, he did not surrender after being caught by the main group. He ended in 13th place, 4'54 down on stage winner Mikel Nieve. Still, he hadn't come up with the goods. "Of course you always want to win a race," he said.
Bakelants has won the Tour de l'Avenir in 2008, showing his good all-around skills. In that same year he also won Liège - Bastogne - Liège Espoirs - results that earned him a spot on Omega Pharma-Lotto in 2010. Bakelants has shown his aggressiveness this year and in the Giro d'Italia. He didn't win today but it was not for a lack of trying. "My legs were very tired from the weekend, what else could I have tried?" he asked.