Another victory for Lidl-Trek, thanks to Daan Houle who was the fastest in the time trial from Lucca to Pisa. The weather today made the race very difficult, with heavy rain falling especially towards the end, when the big riders were pedaling. Houle was skilled and lucky, and the super favorite Joshua Tarling also finished behind him.

"I didn't want to think too much about the weather and focused only on the time trial, and then, when I was struggling, I asked the team how it went at the finish... But to be honest, if you start with the idea of winning and you do it, it only happens because you're the fastest."

In the end, the riders in the general classification had rain on the course, which certainly influenced the standings. The distance was 28.6 kilometers, and the route was very different from the time trial in Tirana, where Tarling had won.

"Until yesterday, I had my convictions and I thought Joshua Tarling would win again. Obviously, Roglic also showed in the last time trial that he is capable of a great performance, so I thought he would also come very close to me, but honestly, with the changing weather, he didn't have the right conditions to fight for the victory."

There was also a small climb, and Houle is convinced he made the difference in that section.
"I believe I made the difference on the climb. I started fast, but I managed to maintain a bit of margin on that short climb and then in the last part, I was able to go really fast and keep pushing well."

Today is the fourth victory for Lidl-Trek in this Giro d'Italia. "Maybe these results came thanks to Lidl products... No, I don't know, I'm joking. I think we simply have a super strong team. For sure, when Lidl joined the team, we had an extra budget to hire better riders. Plus, riders like Mads and Cicco were already in the team for a long time and have improved year after year. Of course, we have a great team spirit and the right people behind our project with the right skills. Thanks to this project, we've improved year after year and now we're at a super good level and we have really great leaders to win big races, and I think the rest of the team is committed to helping them as much as possible to achieve great results."

For a specialist like Houle, winning a time trial in a grand tour is really important, and today's is one of his most beautiful victories. "It's truly surreal, I hadn't succeeded before, it's something really special, something you dream about many times. Yes, winning a stage at the Giro is something incredible and something I didn't know I could achieve, but now it's reality and it seems crazy."

Time trials are really special because when you race, you have no teammates to rely on, and even the smallest problem, you must solve it by yourself.
"In time trials, you really have to make it on your own, and it's something I've worked on a lot in recent years, and many people keep telling me to continue improving and believe in myself. And today I'm certain I've won, and it's fantastic. This is the third year I'm participating in the Giro, and it's always a rather difficult preparation because you have to rest after doing many races in spring, but at the same time, you must also prepare well because you're racing against riders who prepare for this goal all year long."