During the Giro d'Italia's challenging first mountain stage, Mathias Vacek, a promising 22-year-old cyclist from Lidl-Trek, showcased his climbing skills yet narrowly missed taking the maglia rosa. The race dynamic shifted dramatically after an early attack from teammate Giulio Ciccone, which impacted Vacek's performance in the final kilometers. Despite falling back in the last moments, Vacek expressed pride in his effort and aims to contend for future stages. Mads Pedersen's earlier leadership was instrumental in setting up the team's strategy for Vacek's chance at glory.
I tried my best and I was feeling good on the climb, but the steepest section and last kilometres when they started attracting, it was a bit too much for me - the pace.
For me, a steady pace is always better, but I tried it, and I'm not regretting anything. I was still there with the best climbers in the world.
In the end, it was not enough, but I'll go for another stage and we'll see. It was a great effort from the team again.
We wanted to try to make a good result with Vacek today; he deserved to get his chance.
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