Julia Jedelhauser dominates the women's competition. © Sportissimus

Giro delle Dolomiti: Queen stage brings preliminary decision

The climb up to the Würzjoch has long since become a classic at the Giro delle Dolomiti. In the 47th edition, the 137-kilometer-long stage with 2000 meters of elevation gain was on Thursday. And it was the preliminary decision in the overall ranking: Julia Jedelhauser and Mauricio Cuartas won the much shorter mountain time trial again by a large margin and are now virtually impossible to catch.

July 25, 2024

From: pm

Both cyclists are well ahead in the overall rankings before the final section on Friday. Jedelhauser is 7:03 minutes ahead of her German compatriot Daniela Kratzer, while Cuartas has a lead of 4:31 minutes over the German Ralph Ziegaus. If they keep the same rhythm in the uphill time trial on the final stage on Friday from Blumau to Steinegg, then they will be in with the overall victory. And after the timed section on Thursday, both announced in unison: "Tomorrow I want to be the fastest again!"

So far, the podiums in all mountain time trials have looked the same: Jedelhauser and Cuartas were out of reach for the competition, Kratzer and Ziegaus followed in second place and the German Carola Skarabela and Eduard Rizzi from Sarnen took third place. This was also the case on Thursday on the 7,8-kilometer-long section with 553 meters of elevation gain from St. Peter in Villnöß to the Halsl/Rodella junction.

Jedelhauser and Cuartas do not shift down a gear

In the women's race, Jedelhauser's winning time of 28.28 minutes put her 3:04 minutes ahead of Kratzer (31.32 minutes). Skarabela crossed the finish line at the Russis Bridge just under half a minute after Kratzer (32.01 minutes). "It was my goal to win the Giro," said Jedelhauser after her third stage win. "I didn't know how good the competition would be. I know Daniela Kratzer from the Transalp, she is a strong cyclist. But after the first stage I already knew that things weren't looking bad for me," said the 36-year-old Bavarian.

Cuartas also traveled to South Tyrol with great ambitions: "A few years ago, a few friends of mine took part in the Giro. They wanted to win, but didn't manage it. This year I wanted to give it a try. This is my first time in the Italian Alps. Cycling here is a pleasure, I really like it, I've never seen such beautiful places," enthused the 28-year-old Colombian. At the finish, the exceptional talent from Medellín had a whopping 1.29 minutes lead over Ziegaus (24.27 minutes).

Mauricio Cuartas was unbeatable today too. © Sportissimus

Eduard Rizzi, one of the few South Tyrolean participants in the Giro delle Dolomiti, followed in third place with a time of 24.56 minutes. "I'm more than happy with that, I'm not the youngest anymore. I've already taken part in the Giro 18 or 19 times, the formula makes it unique. You get to know a lot of people from different places, and not at the finish, but when cycling together on the stages," said the 53-year-old from Astfeld in the Sarntal, who was already overall winner in 2019.

As already mentioned, the last stage of the 47th race is on Friday. The start is again at the Bozen trade fair, via the Eggental valley to Steinegg, then on to Welschnofen and the Carezza lake to the Niger Pass. The return to Bozen takes place via Tiers, where the joint closing ceremony and award ceremony are scheduled to follow.

Results Stage 4

Top 5 men
1. Mauricio Cuartas COL 23.09 minutes
2. Ralph Ziegaus GER 24.37
3. Eduard Rizzi ITA / Athlete Bike Team 24.56
4. Philipp Sprüssel GER 25.40
5. Moritz Egert GER / DGD Racing Team 25.56

Top 5 women
1. Julia Jederelhauser GER / Oberdorfer Radhaus 28.28 minutes
2. Daniela scratch GER / Next Level Racing 31.32
3. Carola Skarabela GER / Team Alé Germany 32.01
4. Johanna Wenisch AUT/Radclub Dynamo Neubau 33.35
5. Elisabeth Sveum NOR / Kloppa Offroad Klubb 33.58

Overall rating

Men
1. Mauricio Cuartas COL 1:07.39 hours
2. Ralph Ziegaus GER +4.31 minutes
3. Eduard Rizzi ITA / Athlete Bike Team +5.23
4. Philipp Sprüssel GER +7.01
5. Moritz Egert GER / DGD Racing Team +8.07

women's
1. Julia Jedelhauser GER / Oberdorfer Radhaus 1:24.49 hours
2. Daniela scratch GER / Next Level Racing +7.03
3. Carola Skarabela GER / Team Alé Germany +11.14
4. Elisabeth Sveum NOR / Kloppa Offroad Klubb +14.04
5. Katharina Seegers GER +17.87

47. Giro delle Dolomiti – the stages

Stage 5 – Steinegg (Friday, 26 July)
Distance: 85 km
Difference in altitude: 1924 m
Timed section: 5,1 km/500 hm

Total distance: 484 km/10.488 m
Total distance of the timed sections: 33,6 km/2665 hm