The beauty of the Giro d'Italia is also witnessing the temporary spotlight on "heroes for a day" who leap into camera and stage reports just like the most prestigious and well-known names. In yesterday's stage, the fourth and first in Italy, under the sun, the sea and the wind for almost three hours, the public cheered for a young man who, from the official start in Alberobello to San Pancrazio Salentino (km 132.5) was the sole protagonist of the day's breakaway, raising the enthusiasm of roadside fans with the colors of Italy, embodied by his team, and those of his homeland, Spain.

This Polti VisitMalta rider, in his second year as a professional and already at his second Giro participation, will turn 24 in just over a month and goes by the name of Fran Muñoz. Not the only Iberian element in the ProTeam roster of Basso and Contador, but the only non-Italian in the lineup in this corsa rosa, he is a student-athlete who alternates the noble role of domestique with studies in Industrial Electronics and Automation Engineering at the TecnoCampus university in Mataró, the Catalan coastal city where he grew up. His hometown is Oviedo, capital of Asturias, but a summer vacation in Galicia sparked his love for cycling as a child.

In short, a young man forged by the multiple souls of his country... and by Paco Gálvez, historic sports director of Unió Ciclista Vilanova (among "his" riders, for example, Marc Soler) who would remain the most important figure in his growth as a cyclist. Winner of the Catalonia Cup as a Junior, in his first two years as an Under 23 (in the Tarragona club Compak MP Group) Muñoz demonstrated his tenacious dedication and in 2022 was signed by Eolo Kometa U23. In his debut season, he won the Cup of Spain, in the following season he stood on the podium in the national category championship (won by Unai Aznar, now in Kern Pharma) and in 2024 was promoted to the "main squad" as had happened the previous year to Piganzoli, Pietrobon, Tercero and Serrano.

The rest is very recent history. Few words and much seriousness, he was called as a rookie to complete the roster for the Giro of the then Polti Kometa: stage number 4 from Acqui Terme to Andora, for sprinters, he went in a breakaway with Calmejane and De Bod and their dream was neutralized with 5 km to go. A year later, confirmed for the Giro, he tries to repeat the script: again the fourth stage and for sprinters, but this time, on the Apulian roads, no one follows him and he is caught with more than fifty kilometers to go. But it's the initiative that remains in the heart of those who love cycling, that of a rider who normally pulls like a madman to let his teammates rest and when the day is right can try to take the spotlight. Like in the Giro of 2024 and 2025; like in the Gran Piemonte, his last race of the previous season, where he was the last breakaway rider to be caught because he wanted to dedicate a lionhearted performance to his mentor Gálvez, passed away two days earlier; or like in the most challenging stage of the Tour of Hainan this season, when he finished 9th obtaining his first professional top-10 the day after a crash.

These are Muñoz's words after yesterday's stage: "When I saw that no one followed me as soon as I attacked, I shook my head because with the wind that was there I think a fairly large leading group could have done something. But I tried anyway, to honor the Giro d'Italia and our presence here, and I'm also happy not to have suffered consequences in the crash that involved me together with Pedersen, Kragh Andersen and others 22 km from the finish".

The closing words of his sports director Stefano Zanatta: "We started with the idea that other teams would want to stand out and maybe play some chances in the finale in Lecce, which seemed quite tricky. That wasn't the case, but we are satisfied with the work done by Fran and all the guys. Everyone fought as best they could, this is fundamental and now we'll see what to improve..."