Jonathan Milan takes a sprint with a taste of Milan-San Remo

The 4th stage of the Giro d'Italia 2024 led the peloton to the coasts of Liguria, the setting for the final stretch of the Milan-San Remo. A relatively calm stage for the general favorites that culminated in a sprint finish in which Jonathan Milan avenged yesterday's defeat by winning a tight sprint on the streets of Andora.

Jonathan Milan wins the fourth stage of the Giro d'Italia 2024 in Andora

Finally, a completely calm stage, at least for the favorites, in the Giro d'Italia 2024 on a long day, 190 kilometers that connected Acqui Terme and Andora with a route reminiscent of Milan-San Remo, including a 3rd category climb in the middle of the route, the Colle del Melogino, and after a long descent, it reached the Ligurian coast, specifically in the renowned town of Savona, continuing along the sea to the finish in Andora, just after descending Capo Mele, the first of the small climbs that mark the end of the Classicissima.

The day's breakaway was formed early and without much battle, composed of Stefan de Bod, Lilian Calmejane, and the young cyclist from Polti-Kometa, Francisco Muñoz, one of the only 5 Spanish participants in this Giro d'Italia 2024. A few kilometers later, Filippo Ganna joined them, jumping from the group, which made the peloton tense up to prevent a breakaway with a rider of his level from taking too much time.

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Finally, after discussing with his breakaway companions, Ganna voluntarily dropped back to allow the day's adventure, bringing calm to the race. A calm that would last until reaching the first ramps of the Colle del Melogino, where UAE Team Emirates, represented by Domen Novak, set a strong pace that caused havoc among the fast men, with Fabio Jakobsen, Fernando Gaviria, and Tim Merlier dropping off.

On this climb, the timid rain that had been accompanying the cyclists since the start intensified, joining the cold and fog on the long descent. Among the several falls that occurred during the descent, the most affected was Eritrean rider Biniam Girmay, who, after an initial fall, got back on the bike only to fall again a few kilometers later, ultimately opting to abandon.

From here to the finish, the tension in the peloton increased continuously until reaching the streets of Laigueglia, also the setting for one of the spring races leading up to the Milan-San Remo, from where the 3 km gentle climb to Capo Mele began. A small bump where Filippo Ganna once again made a move with a devastating attack and a tremendous display of watts that put the peloton in difficulty.

The Italian's effort lasted until 600 m to go, where the Lidl-Trek team managed to close the gap. Immediately, the American team launched the sprint, but the lack of resources after the chase meant that Jonathan Milan was left exposed too early, having to launch a lightning-fast sprint, slightly downhill, from a long way out.

It seemed like Jonathan Milan wouldn't be able to hold on as we saw Tim Merlier, Kaden Groves, Phil Bauhaus, and Olav Kooij charging like hungry wolves, but none of them managed to catch him, with the Lidl-Trek Italian securing a nail-biting victory in a sprint that seemed to never end.

Stage 4 Classification

1. Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) 4h16'03"
2. Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) +00"
3. Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain-Victorious) +00"
4. Olav Kooij (Visma-Lease a Bike) +00"
5. Tim Merlier (Soudal-QuickStep) +00"
6. Davide Ballerini (Astana) +00"
7. Fernando Gaviria (Movistar Team) +00"
8. Enrico Zanoncello (VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè) +00"
9. Madis Mihkels (Intermarché-Wanty) +00"
10. Giovanni Lonardi (Polti-Kometa) +00"

General Classification

1. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) 15h19'05"
2. Geraint Thomas (INEOS-Grenadiers) 46"
3. Daniel Felipe Martínez (Bora-Hansgrohe) +47"
4. Cian Uijtdebroeks (Visma-Lease a Bike) +55"
5. Einer Rubio (Movistar Team) +56"
6. Lorenzo Fortunato (Astana) +01'07"
7. Juan Pedro López (Lidl-Trek) +01'11"
8. Jan Hirt (Soudal-QuickStep) +01'13"
9. Alexey Lutsenko (Astana) +01'26"
10. Ben O'Connor (Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale)+01'26"