Biniam Girmay, the first “black” African to win the Giro d'Italia.
Biniam Girmay made history as the first African stage winner of the Giro d'Italia. Aged 22 and originally from Eritrea, he defeated Mathieu van der Poel in a sprint under the finish line, winning stage 10.
Ironically, he missed his moment of glory when he missed the post-race press conference to have a check-up at the hospital after being taken with a cork of prosecco (champagne) in his left eye during the podium celebrations.
Biniam Girmay
Girmay made his debut at the 2022 Giro d'Italia. As he pedaled to victory, he received a congratulatory signal from Dutch superstar Van der Poel when he admitted defeat.
“It's unbelievable, every day there's a new story, so I'm very grateful and happy, from the beginning, we controlled the stage. I have no words for my team for what they did today”.
Said Girmay immediately after the race.
Girmay was expected to challenge for a stage victory after becoming the first African to win a World Tour race at Belgium's Gent-Wevelgem classic in March.
After a day of rest on Monday, the race resumed with a 194km course from the coastal town of Pescara to Jesi.
Girmay almost missed a left turn with just over 6km to go, but recovered and caught up with Van der Poel, who defeated the Eritrean in the opening stage on 6 May.
Spaniard Juan Pedro Lopez kept his 12-second lead over Portuguese João Almeida to hold the pink shirt.
“When we started the Giro, we knew we had a chance to win, so this is all part of the success of our team, my family, everyone,” added Girmay.
Richard Carapaz, the 2019 winner, finished in the top five after recovering from a minor crash, but there was no change in the overall standings, with the top contenders finishing in the group behind Girmay.
“In the end it was an incredible sprint against a great champion. This victory is the most important because it beat one of the best cyclists in the world”.
“A few days ago we believed we could win this stage, so this morning we tried to motivate the whole team and I saw a fantastic team around Girmay.”
"Means a lot. Having a new continent at the top is important for cycling.”
Said Valerio Piva, sporting director of Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert.
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Picture: © 2022 Getty Images