Giro d’Italia – Stage 14 – Aleksejs Saramotins «I’ve not felt great from the beginning, and now my goal is simply to finish the Giro»

The rain never let up for the long individual time trial at the Giro d’Italia.  Incessant rain and coolish spring temperatures did not prevent Vasil Kiryienka (Sky) from dominating the stage in order to take the win ahead of the overall favorites. Even Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo), who had lost the pink jersey the day before, could not muster the speed needed to win the stage, ultimately losing 14 seconds to Kiryienka.  IAM Cycling nevertheless found a way to show its strength by placing three riders in the top-25.  An 11^th place from Sylvain Chavanel and a 14^th from Stef Clement, who only two days previously suffered a heavy crash, proved that both riders were up to the challenge in such a difficult event.  And then add to the equation Sébastien Reichenbach’s 22^nd place, besting Fabio Aru by 18 seconds, and the team can feel very satisfied with its day.

Aleskejs Saramotins, who has been a tireless worker since leaving San Lorenzo al Mare two weeks ago, was distanced by the experts in this time trial designed for specialists.   After finishing his ride, the Latvian on the Swiss team was more than willing to lay his cards on the table.  “Today, I did not go fast enough, and when Roger Kluge caught me, I tried to hold his wheel as long as possible.  Then on the last climb, I was able to kick in a little more power for a better finish.  Since the early stages of the race, I had been responsible for helping the team, most importantly, giving Matteo Pelucchi a hand when getting over the climbs, and then chasing back into the peloton.  But I haven’t been feeling great since the beginning of the race, and now my main goal is simply to finish the Giro.”

Sylvain Chavanel and Stef Clement, who arrived at the team’s hotel much later than the rest of the crew, were divided on their assessment of their respective performances.   Chavanel was able to state his opinion clearly.  “It was a long day and not easy to manage.  It went well for the first 30 kilometers, and I was able to put in the proper effort on the first climb.  The second, however, took a lot out of me, and then I suffered on the descent leading to the finish because the turns were really hard to negotiate in the rain.” 

On the other hand, Clement, still suffering from his wounds picked up in a crash on Thursday, was disappointed not to be able to give the sort of performance he normally would have expected on a day like today.  “I have been dreaming and thinking about this time trial for a while.  I prepared hard for it for six weeks in order to be a play for the win.  Unfortunately my crash the other day ruined everything.  I was not able to put all my power into the pedal, which was essential for a course like this perfect for rouleurs.  To make matters worse, I lost my two gels along the way.  But I will not be choosy, since it is still satisfying to be among the top-15.”