Sibiu (Romania) – tuesday 9 july 2024 - After a strong second place on stage 2a Nizzolo finished off a great day of team work by once again showing his great turn of speed and being declared the winner after Milan Menten (Lotto Dstny) was relegated for irregular sprinting.

"It's a strange feeling to win like this, but a victory is a victory! After all the hard work the team put in all day and all week, I'm happy to deliver this victory. I'm really thankful to the guys who did an amazing job," said Nizzolo.

The 192.9 km stage, starting and finishing in Sibiu, featured an undulating course with over 2000 meters of climbing. It took more than an hour and multiple attacks for a breakaway of seven riders to finally go clear.

The breakaway opened a gap of just under two minutes before the peloton reacted and started to control the race. Matteo Badilatti took turns at the front of the bunch, keeping the escapees in check to ensure a bunch sprint finale.

The breakaway was finally caught with 10 km to go, thanks to diligent work by David de la Cruz at the front. Shortly after, in the last kicker of the day, Astana Development launched a fierce attack with two riders. They had a gap of a few seconds before being reeled back in with 3 km to go. Szymon Sajnok and Mark Donovan then took over at the front, setting up Giacomo Nizzolo, who mastered the final cobbled climb to the finish.

Due to Menten's wide trajectory and notable deviation, Nizzolo initially crossed the finish line in second place. However, following formal complaints from both Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team and Israel Premier Tech, Menten was disqualified by he UCI commissaires, and Nizzolo was declared the winner.

"It was a tricky final! I approached the last corner with 600 meters to go in a good position but decided to wait a little because I knew it was going to be a hard and long sprint. There was a bit of chaos in the last corner, and then I finally got the win!" an elated Nizzolo explained. "It was a great way to finish off this week in Romania. A second place first and now a first place today. It's a good feeling, and we look forward to the next goals!"

This victory comes after a long and strenuous journey back to full fitness for Giacomo Nizzolo, who sustained a complex leg fracture in December and faced several months of diligent rehab before returning to competition at the end of April. This win marks the fourth victory of the season for the Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team.