Casper VAN UDEN. 10 and praise. Head-to-head sprint, to stay ahead. From Lecce's spin cycle, the 23-year-old from Picnic emerges beautifully, having wrung out everyone neatly, with confidence and apparent simplicity. Picnic wins well, toasting at the finish line and celebrating afterwards. All-Dutch podium, with Kooij at a certain point not understanding anything anymore, but perfectly comprehending that today is not his day. First Giro win for Casper, first seasonal victory. It's a first that remains.

Olav KOOIJ. 5. He's the most anticipated man, and even Edoardo Affini (vote 8) has to wait for him, doing a number by catching him, bringing him forward, closing a gap and then... And then Olav stays behind. He doesn't trust, he pulls back, returns. The strength is there, but in a difficult and tricky sprint like this, he lacks a bit of clarity: opaque.

Maikel ZIJLAARD. 6. The 25-year-old Dutch rider from Tudor tries. He throws himself into the mix and ends up entangled.

Mads PEDERSEN. 6.5. Twice on the ground in this stage, the second time near the finish line. He spends a lot to get back to the group, essentially sprinting before the sprint. However, he defends the pink jersey.

Max KANTER. 4. The 27-year-old German from Astana invents a sprint that puts him in the top 5: but he does so without respecting the rules and is consequently disqualified.

Kaden GROVES. 5. His Alpecin team seems more on point than ever, he bounces like a ball.

Sam BENNETT. 6. The 34-year-old Irish rider from Decathlon tries to keep up with these youngsters, but in the end, his head spins.

Lorenzo FORTUNATO. 6.5. More than lucky, he's determined. He knows he has to strike while the iron is hot, put hay in the barn, to get ahead with work and secure the blue jersey as much as possible. Today he brings home important points, which allow him to take the Mediolanum blue jersey back to the hotel.

Francisco MUÑOZ. 7.5. He takes off and goes, immediately. The 24-year-old Spanish rider is in a hurry. No time to look around and off he goes. Immediately attacking, the Polti-VisitMalta rider. All ALONE, as Francesca and Stefano Polti would want, the latter responsible for the single-origin coffee SOLO division. A matter of marketing, of legs, and heart. He's caught 56 km from the finish, after a beautiful SOLO.

Nickolas ZUKOWSKY. 17. Pink jersey Pedersen falls, along with Ciccone and Bardet, several riders crash: everyone restarts, except for the Canadian from Q36.5. Pidcock loses a fundamental piece.

Giulio CICCONE. 17. At 18 km from the finish, he has a mechanical issue and Cicco is forced to stop. Angry return by the Abruzzese, supported by a superb and incredibly generous Jacopo Mosca (vote 8), who brings him back to the group. Sprint stage? Predictable stage? Yes, sure. Quote of the day always signed by Marcello Marchesi: "I am a friend. I'm worth a treasure".

LECCE. 10. It was beautiful in Alberobello, even more so in Lecce. The Giro d'Italia is Italy's, and Puglia embraces the pink race with warmth and passion. Albania, with all due respect, is far away. Just the local kilometer shows more fans than in all three stages. We know the Giro is to promote cycling in the land of the Albanians, but it's Lecce that is promoted.