Arnaud Démare has extended his lead at the 2020 Giro d’Italia after finishing the 11th stage first, his fourth stage victory in the event so far. Démare now leads Peter Sagan with 36 points as the other man finished second in Wednesday’s race. It was also Sagan’s fourth-second place of the race as he was the winner on Tuesday. Alvaro Hodeg came third.

Speaking after the race, Dèmare praised his team and thanked them for their support all through the race; “Impressive, really impressive. The whole team moved up for me. They had to bring the breakaway back and set a really high pace. We had to do well getting through all the tight turns in the town but of course, before the finish, everybody did a great job. Jacopo Guarnieri was fantastic.”

“There he was for 400 metres and I was waiting. Then, in the end, I launched the sprint and I knew that people were trying to get around but I was strongest for the line. It feels amazing. Of course, I didn’t think I could get four stages here. I was looking for a stage win and I’m so happy. I really want to congratulate the whole team because it’s their victory as well. They believed in me, everyone has worked really hard and the work is paying off.” Démare belongs to the Groupama FDJ team.

Wednesday’s race was going to end in a sprint finish, something Dèmare was looking forward to. He was followed closely by Sagan who became distracted, costing him his lead.

There are 144 riders currently participating in the Giro d’Italia, which began on October 3 and would run till the 25th. Wednesday was stage 11 of the event with 10 more stages to go. It is the second Grand Tour to take place in 2020 after the Tour de France.

Written by: Leon Osamor