Cuban best cyclist withdraws from Giro d'Italia after fall

HAVANA, Cuba, Jul 7 (ACN) Cuban cyclist Arlenis Sierra, the best router of America in the last decade, said goodbye Thursday to the Giro d'Italia Donne, one of the three most important races of the world circuit, after suffering a fall on Wednesday.

The Spanish club Movistar Team announced in its institutional profile on Twitter that Sierra did not take the start in the seventh stage of the Giro Donne, as the Cuban champion suffered a fall on Wednesday on the way to Bergamo.

That day, Sierra crossed the finish line in 25th place, 38 seconds behind the Dutch multiple Olympic and world champion in road, track and cyclo-cross Marianne Vos, who timed 2:58:30 hours, according to the International Cycling Union (UCI).

In that stage, about 115 kilometers (km) from Sarnico to Bergamo, in northern Italy, about 150 riders from the best elite teams faced five Grand Prix de Montagne, called San Pantaleone, at km 16.1, 33.8, 51.5, 69.2 and 86.9 of the route.

The number and the similar distance between them of these elevations, arranged along the route, made for a very tactical and at the same time risky section due to the numerous descents, as well as prone to speed and to the compact permanence of the peloton, due to the moderate length of the route and the uphill slopes.

Sierra achieved on Monday a commendable sixth place and remained stable around the 24th place, in addition to its primary performance to protect the overall leadership of the Giro in the hands of the Movistar leader and the UCI rankings, the Dutch Olympic and world title holder Annemiek van Vleuten, who has great chances to realize the scepter in the tenth stage.

The next competition for the women of the famous blue team will be from July 24 to 31 at the Tour de France, where the 29-year-old Sierra, from Manzanillo, is expected to return.