Giro Rosa 2018 Stage 2: Sprint victory Kirsten Wild, Lucinda Brand new leader

The Giro Rosa's 2nd stage is a hilly out-and-back leg in Ovada. Attackers Gutierrez Rui and Arzuffi are brought back with 500 meters left before Kirsten Wild outsprints Giorgia Bronzini and Marianne Vos. Lucinda Brand took a time bonus on an intermediate sprint and is the new overall leader. (Slideshow route/profile)

Results 2nd stage 2018 Giro Rosa

1. Kirsten Wild (nld)
2. Giorgia Bronzini (ita) s.t.
3. Marianne Vos (nld) s.t.
4. Marta Bastianelli (ita) s.t.
5. Amy Pieters (nld) s.t.
6. Alexi Ryan (usa) s.t.
7. Ilaria Sanguineti (ita) s.t.
8. Roxane Fournier (fra) s.t.
9. Amanda Spratt (aus) s.t.
10. Lucinda Brand (nld) s.t.

GC after the 2nd stage
1. Lucinda Brand (nld)
2. Leah Kirchmann (can) s.t.
3. Ellen van Dijk (nld) + 0.03
4. Ruth Winder (usa) s.t.
5. Juliette Labous (fra) s.t.
6. Lianne Lippert (ger) s.t.
7. Julia Soek (nld) s.t.
8. Amanda Spratt (aus) + 0.04
9. Gracie Elvin (aus) s.t.
10. Annemiek van Vleuten (nld) s.t.

13. Chantal Blaak (nld) + 0.15
14. Megan Guarnier (usa) s.t.
15. Karol-Ann Canuel (can) s.t.
22. Katarzyna Niewiadoma (pol) + 0.29
27. Marianne Vos (nld) + 0.34
28. Sabrina Stultiens (nld) + 0.38
32. Elisa Longo Borghini (ita) + 0.42
45. Shara Gillow (aus) + 1.16

Race report
The pack is still bunched in Acqui Terme, where the first intermediate sprint of the day is won by Leah Kirchmann ahead of Lucinda Brand. Not much later, Sheyla Gutierrez Rui is the first rider to attack with 68 kms to go and she puts more than 2 minutes into the peloton just before Belforte Monferrato, the only classified climb of the day. At the crest the lead is almost gone and Alice Maria Arzuffi jumps across. With two they extend the lead to 3 minutes.

With 14 kms remaining Lucinda Brand goes on the counter-attack. That makes sense, Arzuffi is 2.23 down on her on GC.

Lucinda Brand is brought back, yet the gap goes down fast as a side-effect. In the last 500 metres the attackers are reeled in before Kirsten Wild sprints to victory ahead of Giorgia Bronzini and Marianne Vos.

Thank to the 2 seconds time bonus on the first intermediate sprint Lucinda Brand is the new GC-leader.