Jonas Vingegaard: a hat-trick and the Maglia Rosa in Pila

He laid down the law. Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) came to this 2026 Giro d’Italia with a single mission: to win and (sportingly) dismantle the opposition. Along the way, he has already collected several side quests: the Maglia Azzurra, which he now dominates comfortably, and above all three stage victories, added this Saturday like a relentless collector of mountain summits.
Blockhaus, Corno alle Scale, Pila: the rider from Hillerslev is writing history one climb at a time, and this Sunday he will arrive at Milan’s Duomo wearing the most beautiful garment in cycling — the Maglia Rosa.

Yet, despite looking vastly superior at the finish, nothing came easy — neither for him nor for the “bees” of Team Visma | Lease a Bike. Today’s stage will stay in the memory of many: 4,400 metres of elevation gain in just 133 km, under scorching heat above 30°C. The fact that barely 20 riders remained in the leader’s group at the foot of the final climb speaks volumes about the toll the day took. But even more revealing were the faces of Tim Rex, loyal domestique of the new Giro leader, who spent 90 km controlling the breakaway almost single-handedly, only to finish the day completely spent.

The battle for the Giro d’Italia podium – Vingegaard and an unexpected contender

When Davide Piganzoli took control of the favourites’ group, the outgoing Maglia Rosa, Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain Victorious), had already lost contact. And when the Italian pulled off, Jonas Vingegaard was practically already alone. A simple acceleration was enough to shake off Felix Gall (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team), who spent the following 4.5 km chasing from ever further behind, eventually finishing as best of the rest, nearly 50 seconds down.

Behind, Davide Piganzoli crossed the line alongside the Red Bull–BORA–hansgrohe duo, Jai Hindley and Giulio Pellizzari, who — together with Thymen Arensman (INEOS Grenadiers) — are likely to battle for the podium spot that Eulálio may eventually relinquish… or perhaps not, because his race has been nothing short of heroic, and he still remains ahead of Gall.

Be that as it may, Vingegaard is now a solid race leader: a margin of two and a half minutes, with three demanding mountain stages still to come (Carì, Alleghe, and Piancavallo) to seal the deal. But first, Milan tomorrow.

All Giro d’Italia classifications after Stage 14