Sepp Kuss wins the queen stage of the Giro and Jumbo-Visma strengthens Vingegaard's dominance

Visma-Lease a Bike turned the queen stage of the 2026 Giro d'Italia into another demonstration of collective strength. In a grueling day between Feltre and Alleghe, with the Passo Giau as Cima Coppi and a finish at Piani di Pezzè, Sepp Kuss finished off from the breakaway and achieved his first stage victory in the Giro, thus completing his collection of wins in the three grand tours.

    Sepp Kuss overtakes Ciccone and wins the hardest stage of the Giro

The stage began before the start with the news of Jhonatan Narvaez's (UAE) withdrawal due to an accident after yesterday's stage and the retirement of Michael Valgren and James Shaw (EF). Once launched, it broke apart very early, as expected, at the Passo Duran. The breakaway gained quality with riders like Giulio Ciccone, Einer Rubio, Damiano Caruso, Michael Storer, Derek Gee, Giulio Pellizzari, and Kuss himself. Ciccone, very active in the mountains, accumulated important points in his fight for the blue jersey and even managed to break away solo after the Passo Falzarego, but the final climb to Piani di Pezzè ended up putting everyone in their place.

Kuss, who had been given freedom on a day when Jonas Vingegaard did not need to take risks, climbed back during the hardest part of the final ascent. The American caught and surpassed Ciccone just over two kilometers from the finish, then resisted the push from Derek Gee and crossed the line as the winner. This is Visma-Lease a Bike's fifth victory in this Giro, following the four achieved by Vingegaard.

It's Ciccover. #GirodItalia pic.twitter.com/yy0StXM02t

— Giro d'Italia (@giroditalia) May 29, 2026

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Behind, the overall leader continued to race defensively and was never in any trouble. Vingegaard responded effortlessly to Felix Gall's move on the final climb and entered alongside the Austrian, maintaining his control over the race. However, the battle for the podium did see significant changes. Thymen Arensman lost time in the decisive stretch, and Jai Hindley took advantage of the queen stage to snatch the provisional third position in the overall standings.

Derek Gee also emerged strengthened from the day, finishing second in the stage and being the protagonist of an offensive that allowed him to improve his position in the standings. Afonso Eulálio, who had resisted for a good part of the stage, suffered again at the end, while Davide Piganzoli continues to close in on the fight for the young riders' classification.

Top 10 Stage 19 Giro d'Italia 2026

1. Sepp Kuss (Visma-Lease a Bike) – 4:28:33
2. Derek Gee (Lidl-Trek) – +13
3. Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) – +36
4. Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM) – +39
5. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) – +39
6. Jai Hindley (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) – +43
7. Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious) – +1:06
8. Davide Piganzoli (Visma-Lease a Bike) – +1:11
9. Einer Rubio (Movistar Team) – +1:19
10. Michael Storer (Tudor Pro Cycling Team) – +1:19

Top 10 General Classification Giro d'Italia 2026 (after Stage 19)

1. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) – 75:13:16
2. Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) – +4:03
3. Jai Hindley (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) – +5:04
4. Thymen Arensman (Netcompany INEOS) – +5:33
5. Derek Gee (Lidl-Trek) – +6:31
6. Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain Victorious) – +7:26
7. Michael Storer (Tudor Pro Cycling Team) – +7:50
8. Davide Piganzoli (Visma-Lease a Bike) – +8:29
9. Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious) – +9:01
10. Egan Bernal (Netcompany INEOS) – +11:19