CYCLING – TEAM Bahrain Victorious rider Edoardo Zambanini climbed the podium yesterday in the second stage of the 10th Cro Race, currently being held in Croatia.
The leg was originally set to cover 114 kilometres, finishing on the island of Pag via its iconic bridge. However, with heavy winds making the crossing unsafe, organisers shortened the stage, moving the finish to kilometre 51 at the summit of the category three climb in Jovici.
Despite the reduced distance, the racing remained intense. The wind had little effect up to that point, which meant a sprint to the line seemed inevitable. With fresh legs across the peloton and the finish line placed at the top of a climb, Bahrain Victorious looked to Zambanini to contest the finale. The decision paid off, as the Italian rider powered to second place.
Although visibly frustrated after crossing the line, Zambanini reflected positively on the result. “Yes, I can be happy, really happy with what the team did today,” he said. “We all committed to each other: Damiano (Caruso), Max (van der Meulen), Vlad (van Mechelen), Jakob (Omrzel), Fran (Miholjevic), Zak (Erzen)…everyone. We raced like a team.
“In the final, we went a little early, and with 1km to go, I was around 15th position. The left side was shorter, but I came up the longer way on the right to overtake. I found myself alongside (Paul) Magnier, who won the stage, but it was a big line of sprinters, including (Danny) Van Poppel, all going for the win. I was just short of Magnier.”
Bahrain Victorious sports director Aart Vierhouten praised both the collective effort and Zambanini’s performance. “In shortened stages, it’s all about taking the initiative, and that’s what we did,” said Vierhouten. “We focused on what we could control, and we knew Zambanini was our best option for an uphill sprint.
“The whole team committed to him, and everything worked well. Edoardo took a good wheel, but Magnier has been unbeatable in recent weeks, so second place is a strong result. It gives confidence to Edoardo and to the entire team; we showed we’re ready to race for big results.”
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