Samwise Cycle Racing Newsletter
Friday, May 29, 2026
Sepp Kuss wins Giro d’Italia queen stage in the Dolomites
American Sepp Kuss (Visma-Lease a Bike) won stage 19 of the Giro d’Italia on Friday, conquering the queen stage in the Dolomites to complete a set of stage wins across all three Grand Tours. Over the 151-kilometre route, which climbed the Passo Giau and Passo Falzarego before finishing at Piani di Pezzè above Alleghe, Kuss caught early leader Giulio Ciccone with just over two kilometres remaining and rode clear. Derek Gee-West (Lidl-Trek) finished second and Ciccone third. Kuss called the victory the last missing piece of his Grand Tour collection. His teammate, race leader Jonas Vingegaard, finished safely in the chasing group.
Sources: Cyclingnews · Cycling Weekly · Velo
Vingegaard holds pink as Giro podium reshuffles on queen stage
Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) kept the Giro d’Italia maglia rosa on stage 19, but the podium behind him was reshaped in the Dolomites. Jai Hindley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) climbed into third overall after Thymen Arensman (Netcompany-Ineos) was distanced in the attacking finale and slipped to fourth. Derek Gee-West (Lidl-Trek), runner-up on the stage, moved into the top five, displacing former race leader Afonso Eulálio. Vingegaard leads Felix Gall by 4:03, with Hindley at 5:04, Arensman at 5:33 and Gee-West at 6:31. Two stages remain before the race concludes in Rome on Sunday, May 31.
Sources: Cycling Weekly · Cyclingnews
Ciccone takes Giro mountains jersey on the Cima Coppi
Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) took control of the Giro d’Italia mountains classification on stage 19, claiming the blue jersey on the race’s hardest day in the Dolomites. The Italian collected maximum points atop the Passo Giau, the Cima Coppi as the highest point of this year’s race, before pressing on over the Passo Falzarego. Ciccone, who finished third on the stage behind winner Sepp Kuss and Derek Gee-West, displaced overall leader Jonas Vingegaard at the top of the climbers’ standings. Vingegaard retained the maglia rosa. The mountains battle continues into the Giro’s final two stages, with Sunday’s finish in Rome.
Sources: Cycling Weekly · Cyclingnews
Narváez forced out of Giro on stage 19 as EF withdraw two riders
Triple stage winner Jhonatan Narváez was forced out of the Giro d’Italia early on stage 19, abandoning around 20 kilometres into the 151-kilometre queen stage. The Ecuadorian had crashed on the transfer back to the team bus after stage 18, leaving him in discomfort on Friday’s demanding Dolomite terrain. Narváez had reclaimed the ciclamino points jersey on stage 18 and won three stages during the race. Separately, EF Education-EasyPost withdrew stage winner Michael Valgren and James Shaw ahead of stage 19, saying neither rider was injured and that it wanted to prioritise their recovery for upcoming racing.
Sources: Cyclingnews · Cyclingnews
Vingegaard on verge of completing Grand Tour set in Rome
With two stages remaining, Jonas Vingegaard stands on the verge of his first Giro d’Italia title and the completion of his Grand Tour set, having previously won the Tour de France and Vuelta a España. The Dane emerged unscathed from the brutal queen stage won by teammate Sepp Kuss, capping a dominant week for Visma-Lease a Bike, and leads Felix Gall by 4:03. The squad has controlled the race through the mountains, taking the stage win and defending the maglia rosa. Vingegaard is positioned to seal overall victory when the Giro finishes in Rome on Sunday, May 31.
Sources: Cyclingnews · Cycling Weekly
Giro d’Italia Women begins Saturday with Vollering favourite
The Giro d’Italia Women begins Saturday, May 30, with a nine-stage route covering 1,179.7 kilometres and more than 12,000 metres of climbing before finishing in Saluzzo on June 7, billed as the hardest edition in the race’s history. Demi Vollering (FDJ-SUEZ) lines up as the outright favourite, racing the Corsa Rosa for the first time since 2021. Double defending champion Elisa Longo Borghini returns from illness chasing a third straight title, alongside climbers Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney, Marlen Reusser and Anna van der Breggen. Sprinter Lorena Wiebes headlines the fast finishers. The gravel climb of the Colle delle Finestre looms on Saturday, June 6.
Sources: Velo
Gee-West rides into Giro top five on the queen stage
Derek Gee-West (Lidl-Trek) delivered one of stage 19’s standout performances, riding in the day’s breakaway and finishing second on the Dolomite queen stage behind Sepp Kuss to climb into the Giro d’Italia general classification top five. The Canadian moved up to fifth overall on the summit finish at Piani di Pezzè above Alleghe, sitting 6:31 behind race leader Jonas Vingegaard. Gee-West’s ride continued a strong Giro for Lidl-Trek, whose Giulio Ciccone took over the mountains classification on the same stage. He sits 58 seconds behind fourth-placed Thymen Arensman with two stages left before Rome.
Sources: Cyclingnews · Cycling Weekly
General Classification
GC Top 5 — after Stage 19
1. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) — Maglia Rosa
2. Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM) — +4:03
3. Jai Hindley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) — +5:04
4. Thymen Arensman (Netcompany-Ineos) — +5:33
5. Derek Gee-West (Lidl-Trek) — +6:31
Points / Mountains
Classification Leaders
Maglia Azzurra (Mountains) — Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek), took lead on Stage 19
Maglia Rosa (Overall) — Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike)
Maglia Ciclamino (Points) — Jhonatan Narváez led before abandoning Stage 19
Curated by JD · samwise.agency
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