Sepp Kuss of Visma-Lease a Bike secured a historic solo victory on stage 19 of the Giro d'Italia on Friday, crossing the finish line atop Piani di Pezzè in the Dolomites. The American became the 116th rider to complete the Grand Tour stage victory trilogy, adding a Giro win to his previous successes in the Tour de France (2021) and Vuelta a España (2019, 2023).
Stage 19: Brutal Dolomites Challenge
The 151km stage featured a relentless 5,000m of climbing through the Dolomites, with high-altitude ascents and technical descents before finishing in the Veneto village of Alleghe. Lidl-Trek's Giulio Ciccone made a bold move on the final long descent, building a one-minute lead with 10km remaining. However, Kuss launched a powerful pursuit at the start of the final climb, catching and passing Ciccone with just over 2km to go.
Kuss's Solo Victory
Kuss crossed the finish line alone, cheered by thousands of fans, finishing 13 seconds ahead of Canadian Derek Gee-West (Lidl-Trek). Ciccone held on for third, 36 seconds behind Kuss, while Austria's Felix Gall (Decathlon) took fourth, 39 seconds back. Jonas Vingegaard finished fifth with the same time as Gall.
General Classification Update
Vingegaard maintains a commanding lead of 4 minutes and 3 seconds over Gall in the overall standings. The Dane's Visma-Lease a Bike team dominated the high mountains, with Kuss's stage win further cementing their strength.
Narvaez Abandons
Earlier Friday, Jhonatan Narvaez of UAE Team Emirates was forced to abandon the race due to injuries from a minor crash during Thursday's post-stage transfer. The Ecuadorian, who had three stage victories, could not continue due to severe discomfort.
