Despite a good performance, Lennard Kämna was unable to repeat his strong result from the previous year at the start of the traditional Tirreno-Adriatico long-distance cycling trip. The Bremer from Team Bora-hansgrohe finished 14th in the ten-kilometer individual time trial in Lido di Camaiore.
The 27-year-old was 26 seconds slower than winner Juan Ayuso from Spain, who was surprisingly one second ahead of top favorite Filippo Ganna. A year ago, in a similar long battle against the clock, Kämna came second behind winner Ganna at the same place and fourth at the end of the tour.
“It was a short but tough TT. I did my best. We are here with three captains and we will try to be on the podium at the end,” said Kämna. In addition to the German, who wants to finish overall at the Giro d’Italia this year, the Colombian Dani Martinez and the Australian Jai Hindley are in the leader’s role at Bora.
Vingegaard is a big favorite for overall victory
When it comes to the overall ranking, a lot is possible for Kämna. He was only four seconds slower than Jonas Vingegaard. The Danish Tour de France winner is the big favorite in the race between the seas, although the gap to Ayuso will also be a challenge for him. Last year, Kämna’s current teammate Primoz Roglic won, and this year he is competing in the Paris-Nice event, which is taking place at the same time.
Tuesday is a day for the sprinters. There is only one mountain classification to overcome on the 199 kilometers from Camaiore to Follonica. The last 60 kilometers are almost completely flat. The race ends on Sunday in San Benedetto del Tronto.
