An incredibly thrilling finale at Salice Terme where, at the finish line of the seventh stage of the Giro d'Italia Women, Célia Gery outsprinted a group of attackers who had escaped on the descent of the day's only categorized climb, thus securing the second victory for FDJ-United Suez at the 2026 Giro d'Italia following the one obtained on Wednesday by Demi Vollering.

Behind the French rider, Lucinda Brand (Lidl-Trek) and an impressive Chantal Pegolo (Isolmant - Premac - Vittoria) had to settle for the runner-up positions, while a lively Elisa Longo Borghini (very active together with Silvia Persico in keeping alive the attempt that decided the stage) closed in fifth place but above all gained five seconds in the general classification on the pink jersey Anna van der Breggen, who crashed (without consequences) about fifty kilometers from the finish.

THE RACE

The stage began with a series of attacks from which emerged as winners Chantal Pegolo (Isolmant - Premac - Vittoria), Marjolein van 't Geloof (Laboral Kutxa - Fundación Euskadi), Alison Jackson (St Michel - Preference Home - Auber93), Sara Luccon (Top Girls Fassa Bortolo) and Gaia Segato (Vini Fantini - BePink) who quickly took off. Attempting to catch up with them in a second wave were both Robyn Clay (Team Picnic PostNL) and Sara Fiorin (Laboral Kutxa - Fundación Euskadi) as well as Giorgia Serena (Team Mendelspeck E-Work) and Eleonora La Bella (Aromitalia Vaiano) but both pairs failed to close the growing gap of the breakaway and, after traveling several kilometers at a slow pace, after the midpoint of the stage they were eventually caught by the peloton.

At the head of the latter, long holding a deficit of more than eight minutes, after passing through Piacenza the Lidl-Trek of pink jersey Elisa Balsamo takes charge and, changing pace, progressively begins to reduce the gap with respect to the five leaders. With additional support from Human Powered Health the margin of the quintet in command drops even more noticeably until falling below the five-minute barrier, at which point, about fifty kilometers from the finish, the peloton is shaken by a massive crash involving, among others, Monica Trinca Colonel (Liv Jayco AlUla), Marlen Reusser (Movistar), the blue jersey Cavallar, Elena Cecchini and above all the pink jersey Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime). The race leader, though battered, immediately gets back on her bike and, after a chase of several kilometers, finds thanks to the help of her teammates the tail of a group that, undeterred, has meanwhile reduced to three minutes the gap from the fugitives.

On the attack of the day's only categorized climb at Pietragavina the margin of the five in command stands at around 1'20" and allows, once they pass the flying finish at Zavattarello (1st Luccon), the strongest climbers, Pegolo, Jackson and Segato, to resist in command at the top approaching the subsequent downhill kilometers ahead.

Here, with a great descent, Célia Gery (FDJ United - SUEZ), Lucinda Brand, Elisa Longo Borghini and Silvia Persico (UAE Team ADQ) bring themselves one after another onto the trio in front which, all together, compose a group that, led by the Bergamo native, manages to put even 35 seconds between itself and the peloton of the pink jersey. This, though pulled with force by Uno-X, Human Powered Health and CANYON//SRAM, fails in its attempt to catch the attackers who, resisting strenuously especially thanks to the efforts of Persico and Longo Borghini, arrive to contest with just over ten seconds the stage victory conquered then by Gery ahead of Brand and the winner of the Oscar Tuttobici 2025 as best junior Pegolo, at her best placement of the year (her first at Continental level) so far.

At the foot of today's podium closes instead Longo Borghini (5th) who however, through today's action, has forcefully taken five seconds from the pink jersey van der Breggen and the other rivals for the general classification who are not excluded from possibly playing an important role in determining the final standings.

What is certain, however, is that this small gain, in addition to bringing the Italian champion closer to Reusser's fifth place and Holmgren's fourth, gives morale to the defending champion in view of tomorrow's queen stage (the Rivoli-Sestriere of 106 kilometers) where the Colle delle Finestre, and recent history teaches us this, could completely overturn the classification and hierarchies.

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FINISHING ORDER

1. Célia Gery (FRA/FDJ United-Suez) - 3:51:13

2. Lucinda Brand (NED/Lidl-Trek) - s.t.

3. Chantal Pegolo (ITA/Isolmant-Premac) - s.t.

4. Alison Jackson (CAN/St Michel-Preference Home) - s.t.

5. Elisa Longo Borghini (ITA/UAE Team Adq) at 0:03

6. Gaia Segato (ITA/Vini Fantini-BePink) at 0:03

7. Lara Gillespie (IRL/UAE Team Adq) at 0:08

8. Chiara Consonni (ITA/CANYON SRAM) at 0:08

9. Millie Couzens (GBR/Fenix-Premier Tech) at 0:08

10. Josie Nelson (GBR/Picnic-PostNL) at 0:08

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION

1. Anna van der Breggen (NED/SD Worx-Protime) - 23:40:36

2. Demi Vollering (NED/FDJ United-Suez) at 1:00

3. Antonia Niedermaier (GER/CANYON SRAM) at 1:24

4. Isabella Holmgren (CAN/Lidl-Trek) at 2:01

5. Marlen Reusser (SUI/Movistar) at 2:03

6. Elisa Longo Borghini (ITA/UAE-Adq) at 2:07

7. Niamh Fisher-Black (NZL/Lidl-Trek) at 2:33

8. Femke de Vries (NED/Visma Lease a Bike) at 2:38

9. Monica Trinca (ITA/Liv AlUla Jayco) at 3:21

10. Urska Zigart (SLO/AG Insurance-Soudal) at 3:26