Jhonatan Narvaez won the eighth Giro stage. © APA/afp / LUCA BETTINI

The runaway triumphs, a scary moment for Vingegaard

Jhonatan Narvaez has given his badly battered UAE team its third stage win at the Giro d'Italia.

16 May 2026

From: dpa/dl

The Ecuadorian cyclist, who had already won the fourth stage, also triumphed on the eighth stage after 156 kilometers on the final climb through the narrow streets of Fermo. The team of cycling dominator Tadej Pogacar, who is not participating in the Giro, had lost their three most important riders due to serious crashes at the beginning of the race.

Norwegian Andreas Leknessund finished second, 32 seconds behind, ahead of Martin Tjøtta. Narvaez's teammate Mikkel Bjerg had done much of the work for the Ecuadorian's victory. Top favorite Jonas Vingegaard, who wore the blue jersey as the best climber the day after his victory at the Blockhaus, gained two seconds on overall leader Afonso Eulalio in the final sprint.

Jonas Vingegaard is still struggling at the Giro. © ANSA / LUCA ZENNARO

The Portuguese rider still holds a 3:15 minute lead over Vingegaard. Austrian Felix Gall is third, 3:34 minutes behind. The favorites were wary of each other in the finale. After the tough and long stage the previous day, the professionals nevertheless set a blistering pace on Saturday's 156-kilometer stage. From the start in Chieti, the race headed rapidly towards the coast. Numerous attacks came immediately, but no group could break away for long. The riders also had to contend with the wind.

Vingegaard had a scare when the peloton split and he found himself in the back group. But his team closed the gap. Then the trio of Bjerg, Narvaez, and Leknessund managed to break away. In the hilly finale with steep ramps, the 29-year-old Narvaez made his move with just under ten kilometers to go.

The next mountain finish is on Sunday.

Vingegaard aims to win his third Grand Tour, the Giro d'Italia, after the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España. Only seven riders have achieved this feat. On Sunday, the Dane has the chance to close the gap on the pink jersey of the overall leader at the next mountain finish.
The initially mostly flat section along the Adriatic coast becomes a climbing challenge towards the end. The stage finishes after 184 kilometers and a total of around 2400 meters of elevation gain on the Corno alle Scale in the Bolognese Apennines.