Giro d'Italia 2008 - Stage Twenty

The 2008 Giro d'Italia started from Palermo, southern Italy on May 10 and is held over 21 stages until June 1.

After 20 stages and 89 hours in the saddle the 2008 Giro comes down to a straight run off over a 24 kilometre time trial course into Milan on Sunday (See bottom of page).

The stage is set, let the drama commence - Can Riccardo Ricco in second place beat the better time trialist, Alberto Contador by over four seconds?

And behind, the battle for third is no less exciting - Marzio Bruseghin (@ 2m), Franco Pellizotti (@2:05), Emanuele Sella (@2:35) and Denis Menchov (@2:47).

Stage 20 - May 31 Sabato Rovetta - Tirano 224km

Emanuele Sella won the penultimate stage, but the biggest drama happened on the ascent of the Mortirolo and the battle for overall honours - more

Astana

“It was a hard stage but I really had good legs,” commented Alberto Contador. “It was a lot easier than yesterday when Di Luca and Riccò attacked so furiously. Today I only had to focus on Riccò, taking care that he could not take extra seconds. “

“Look at me now, in pink on the way to Milano. If you would have said this to me before the Giro, I would not have believed it,” continued Contador. “No, I don’t start dreaming yet. In a time trial a lot of things can happen. I want to recuperate maximally and then concentrate 200 per cent on the stage for tomorrow. Anyway, it is mentally good to start with an advantage in the final time trial.”

“ I am so glad, but honestly, I have to thank all my teammates for the trust and their hard work. Yesterday Andreas Klöden worked so hard for me. Today Iglinskiy took over his role in the team on the Gavia. Afterwards there were Gusev and Colom. Earlier Bazayev, Mizurov and Leipheimer did the same. Don’t forget, none of us knew that there would be a Giro until eight days before the start of the race.”

Andreas Klöden, abandoned on the climb of the Passo del Gavia after 105 K of racing. The German rider who had been bothered the whole week with a cold also suffers from a severe infection of the respiratory tract. Last night he came down with a fever. It was impossible to get over the Morirolo with those conditions. Alberto Contador was sorry to see him go. “I feel so, so sad for Andreas Klöden. To leave the race one day before the end must be terrible. This morning at breakfast it was clear that it would be a difficult day for him. I hope he will recover soon.”

Looking ahead to Sunday's climax Contador said he would look carefully at the time trial course to plot his strategy. "I'd love to win the stage of course - but the main thing is to make sure of the pink jersey," he said.

CSF Navigare

"This is a great win for me," said Emanuelle Sella of his third success in the mountains, where his team, despite not being one of the elite formations, has shown dominant form.

CSF have won four stages in all with Matteo Priamo adding to Sella's exploits.

Saumier Duvall Scott

Riccardo Ricco was defiant for his part, saying all remained to play for. "I've given it everything. The Giro finishes tomorrow and I'll not give up until the very end. But Contador surely has the advantage in the time trial."

"My role in this stage has been far from good, and this showed. The Giro ends tomorrow and as I said, we´re men, not robots, so anyone can have a bad day. It´s obvious that Contador has better chances than I do in the TT, but I won´t give up. It´s not over till it´s over, so I´ll put up a nice fight and won´t stop until I reach the finish line. Let the best man win. Beyond results, I´m satisfied with what I´ve done in this Giro. I´ve done my best and it´s been a great race. I´ve made my contribution to the show. If I can´t win tomorrow, I´ll come back for the pink jersey next year."

Rabobank

"Denis Menchov did everything he could on the Mortirolo to make the gap as wide as possible. Even the podium was in sight for a moment. Denis was good, but apparently the others were so as well," said team manager Erik Breukink.

Mor from Breukink - "Why would Denis not be able to win the time trial on Sunday? His bronchial tube infection is over, and he is obviously one of the better riders in this phase of the course." It would also be a nice conclusion for the team, felt the team manager. "It was not always very noticeable, but the team did good work here. Mauricio Ardila in the mountains, and the rest on the plains. Everything worked as it should."

Stage 21 - June 1 Cesano Maderno - Milano 23,5km - TT

Click on Map to enlarge

The last stage is flat, almost all descending, from Cesano Mademo into Milan.