Roglic fastest in time trial to win opening Giro stage

BOLOGNA, Italy (AP) — Primoz Roglic of Slovenia won the opening stage of the Giro d’Italia on Saturday, finishing the individual time trial just ahead of two of the other pre-race favorites.

Roglic, who rides for Jumbo-Visma, was the only cyclist to finish in under 13 minutes on the 8.2-kilometer (5.1-mile) route, which was mainly flat before ending in a steep climb up to the Sanctuary of San Luca.

The 29-year-old Roglic was 19 seconds faster than British cyclist Simon Yates and 23 seconds ahead of home favorite Vincenzo Nibali.

Roglic was 12th down the ramp and had a long wait to see whether his time of 12 minutes, 54 seconds would be enough to beat Yates, who was one of the last to start.

“We were waiting here for I think 3 hours but finally,” Roglic said. “It’s a really nice feeling. We did a perfect job and I’m super happy.”

Sunday’s second stage is a rolling 205 kilometer route from Bologna to Fucecchio, which should be won by a sprinter.

The Giro finishes in Verona on June 2.