Given how the stage was shaping up, it seemed impossible to hold onto the pink jersey, even a miracle to win, but Elisa Balsamo managed something incredible by claiming her third victory at the Buja finish line. On the Montenars climb, the Piedmontese rider was almost bent double from exhaustion, but she never gave up and believed until the very end. A final kilometer full of drama with an unexpected move from Sigrid Haugset who held her ground against the group until 250 meters from the finish, at which point everything was in Elisa's hands and she proved to be nothing short of perfect.

Second place for Lily Williams (Human Powered Health), third Femke Gerritse (Team SD Worx Protime). An excellent day also for Elisa Longo Borghini who came close to the podium and the time bonus, with Silvia Persico finishing fifth.

THE RACE. A stage with simple altimetry but difficult to interpret. 156 km from Bibione to Buja, from the Veneto region, completely flat for half the distance, but extremely challenging in the finale. After the first climb at Moruzzo, it was a continuous up and down until the Montenars ascent. Positioned 21 km from the finish with gradients up to 16%, it proved prohibitive for many riders.

From the start, the pace was extremely high. After a series of attacks and counter-attacks, six riders managed to break away: Cristina Tonetti (Laboral Kutxa Fundacion Euskadi), Alison Jackson (St Michel Preference Home Auber 93), Eleonora Deotto (Team Mendelspeck E-Work), Nienke Veenhoven (Team Visma Lease a Bike), Marta Pavese (Top Girls Fassa Bortolo) and Barbara Guarischi (SD Worx Pro Time). The breakaway riders managed to gain up to 3'10" on the main group, where Team Lidl Trek constantly tried to keep the situation under control.

The first decisive moment of the day came on the Moruzzo climb. Near the summit, Alison Jackson increased the pace and pushed on alone. Cristina Tonetti and Marta Pavesi followed the Canadian rider while the other attackers were caught by the group. The three fugitives managed to gain a good advantage again with several relaunches, but their attempt ended 26 km from the finish.

On the Montenars climb, we got a taste of the moves from the general classification contenders. Celia Gery delivered an incredible pace-setting effort that shattered the group, and shortly after, Demi Vollering launched the first attack of the Giro. Elisa Longo Borghini, Marlen Reusser and Anna Van Der Breggen promptly responded to the European champion, but she never fully committed to the attack. In the leading group, which also included Niamh Fisher Black, Isabella Homgrene and Femke De Vries, there was never true agreement, and so, taking advantage of the descent, the group came back together. A perfect situation for Elisa Balsamo, whom we had seen struggling on the climb, but she managed herself well and recovered.

The final kilometers were quite eventful with many attacks and the road constantly going up and down. About 6 km from the finish, taking advantage of a moment of hesitation, Sigrid Haugset (Uno X Mobility) attempted to surprise the group. The Norwegian rider never managed to gain more than 10 seconds of advantage, but she gave the peloton plenty to worry about before being caught just 300 meters from the line. At that point the sprint began, with Elisa Balsamo easily crossing the finish line first.

Tomorrow the Giro will continue with Elisa Balsamo in the pink jersey and a highly anticipated stage: the time trial climb to Belluno Nevegal. 12.4 km, of which 11 are uphill, with an average gradient of 6.4% and peaks of 15%. We will certainly witness a major shake-up in the general classification.

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STAGE RESULTS

1  Balsamo Elisa Lidl-Trek 03:43:43

2  Williams Lily Human Powered Health + 00

3  Gerritse Femke Team SD Worx-Protime + 00

4  Longo Borghini Elisa UAE Team ADQ + 00

5  Persico Silvia UAE Team ADQ + 00

6  Georgi Pfeiffer Team Picnic PostNL + 00

7  Couzens Millie Fenix-Premier Tech + 

8  Reusser Marlen Movistar Team + 00

9  Gery Célia FDJ United-SUEZ + 00

10 Ludwig Cecilie Uttrup CANYON//SRAM +00

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION

1  Balsamo Elisa Lidl-Trek 10:59:24

2  Williams Lily Human Powered Health + 24

3  Longo Borghini Elisa UAE Team ADQ + 30

4  Vigié Margaux Team Visma | Lease a Bike + 30

5  Gery Célia FDJ United-SUEZ + 30

6  van der Breggen Anna Team SD Worx-Protime + 30

7  Fisher-Black Niamh Lidl-Trek + 30

8  Persico Silvia UAE Team ADQ + 30

9  Vollering Demi FDJ United-SUEZ + 30

10 Dickson Lauren FDJ United-SUEZ + 30