Giro d’Italia 2023: Thibaut Pinot hits out after falling short on Stage 13 – ‘They took advantage of it’

Thibaut Pinot has reflected on a frustrating Stage 13 of the Giro d’Italia, saying his generous riding was taken “advantage” of.

Pinot and Ecuador’s Jefferson Cepeda (EF Education-EasyPost) bickered incessantly – with the French veteran taking exception to Cepeda’s unwillingness to take a turn on the front – during a thrilling showdown in Switzerland

The French veteran then repeatedly launched a series of attacks on the finish into Crans-Montana, but it was Einer Rubio (Movistar) who remained composed to take an unlikely win.

Pinot told Eurosport afterwards: “Big, big disappointment. They know that I am generous in my efforts, they took advantage of it. I don’t count my efforts… they only did that. It’s often the winner who is right but I’m disappointed that I didn’t win.”

On Cepeda, he said: “I don’t understand how you can expect to win that way, it’s not my vision. Maybe he had instructions. His excuse was the general classification for (Hugh) Carthy, I can’t understand it. If I don’t ride, we’re treading water. I hope at least that they will thank me, otherwise we would have not raced for victory.

“It was not a particularly difficult climb; it was hard to pick them off. I had already done a lot of effort on the previous climb to take time. In the valley, we already lost a minute (because of Cepeda). We had a big thorn in our foot. I am happy that he didn’t win.

“I played the others’ game the whole stage but I didn’t want Cepeda to win. I would have preferred it to be Rubio. I would have put my guts into it to prevent him from winning.”

While Rubio was victorious on the day, it is Britain’s Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) that still leads the way, maintaining a two-second lead over Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) in the general classification. Portugal’s Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates) remains third and is 22 seconds adrift of Thomas.

Focus now shifts to Stage 14, as the riders leave Switzerland and take on the Passo del Sempione, before a long flat ride through to Cassano Magnano. By the end, riders will have completed an astonishing 194km in a true test of endurance.

– – –