'I never thought I would do this' - Daan Hoole beats Josh Tarling to time trial victory on Giro d’Italia stage 10 as Isaac del Toro retains race lead

Daan Hoole (Lidl-Trek) powered to a time trial victory on stage ten of the Giro d’Italia, beating pre-race favourite Josh Tarling by seven seconds in Pisa with a time of 32:30.

The Dutchman tore through the 28 kilometre course, using the wind to his advantage on the downhill section to set the best time at the second intermediate checkpoint and continue on to the finish beneath the Leaning Tower.

Behind Hoole and Tarling, British national road champion Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step) took an impressive third place with a time ten seconds slower than that which was set by the Lidl-Trek man.

Speaking afterwards, Hoole said that he had never imagined winning a Grand Tour stage would be possible.

"It's unbelievable," he said. "It didn't sink in yet, I cannot believe it. I'm full of emotions and I want to thank so many people. It's crazy. I was aiming for this day, I was feeling good all week, but to win I never thought about it… To win, I never thought I would do this. I’m so happy. The GC guys had rain, that changed a lot, but I’m still happy I could beat Tarling in the same conditions. It’s an insane feeling, I don’t know what to say."

Was he surprised to beat Tarling? "To be honest, yes," he added. "He’s one of the best time triallists in the world. I think he started super fast, and when I saw his first intermediate time I was thinking it would be hard to beat. I did a good second part, I took some time back, and maybe he exploded a little bit. It’s crazy, I cannot understand it yet. Victory in the Giro is so special. I’m so happy, I want to thank the team, my coach, everyone, my parents, my brother."

Meanwhile, Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) retained the race lead as the general classification was turned on its head. Primož Roglič made up more than a minute after his crash on the gravel stage to move up to fifth overall, 1:18 down on Del Toro. The Mexican race leader’s teammate Juan Ayuso is now just 25 seconds off the maglia rosa.

An impressive showing from Simon Yates saw him jump up to fourth overall, 1:03 off Del Toro’s lead. The Visma-Lease a Bike is now just a single second behind Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorious) in third. Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) finished almost three minutes down on Hoole which saw him drop to eleventh in the standings. The Colombian is now 2:33 down on Del Toro.

How it happened

Stage ten’s time trial course was a relatively short affair and one that appeared to favour the likes of Josh Tarling (Ineos Grenadiers) and others capable of pure power on the flat terrain. The riders faced a 28.6 kilometre run between Lucca and Pisa in Tuscany, with only one slight rise on the parcours which came halfway through the day.

British national road champion Ethan Hayter set an impressive early time, crossing the line beneath the Leaning Tower of Pisa to stop the clock at 32:40. Many thought the 26-year-old Brit would keep himself glued to the hot seat for a while, although Lidl-Trek’s Daan Hoole had other ideas. The man from the Netherlands tore across the course to set a time ten seconds quicker than the effort recorded by Hayter.

It wasn’t long before Tarling himself was out the road. The Welshman, and current British national time trial champion, smashed the first time check, beating Hoole’s time by 17 seconds but there was drama to come. The man from Aberaeron in west Wales was forced to significantly slow down when attempting to overtake Mikkel Honoré (EF Education-EasyPost) on a light left hand bend after he had caught up with the Danish rider.

The Welshman then overtook the rider who started three minutes ahead of him, Paul Double (Jayco-AlUla), but was unable to make up the remaining seconds on Hoole. The Dutchman used the descent on the course to his advantage to ensure that his time was unassailable at the finish.

A sudden heavy downpour in Pisa meant that the general classification favourites had little chance of toppling Hoole once they got started. Primož Roglič was the biggest winner of the day in the battle for the pink jersey. Roglič was 1:10 slower than Hoole, although the Slovenian made up more than a minute of the time he lost on the gravel stage to Siena to move up to fifth overall in the overall standings.

Simon Yates came to the finish 1:43 down on the eventual stage winner. However, a strong showing from the Visma-Lease a Bike man meant that he took huge amounts of time back on his rivals and moved up to third overall.

After crashing on the wet roads, Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) lost a significant amount of time to slip to eleventh overall. The Colombian was almost three minutes behind the time of Hoole and has now given himself work to do as the race progresses.

Isaac del Toro was 2:22 down on the stage winner but retained the race lead. He now leads his teammate Juan Ayuso in second by 25 seconds.

Results

Giro d’Italia 2025, stage 10: Lucca > Pisa (28.6 km ITT)

1. Daan Hoole (Ned) Lild-Trek, in 32:30
2. Josh Tarling (Gbr) Ineos Grenadiers, +7s
3. Ethan Hayter (Gbr) Soudal Quick-Step, +10s
4. Mattia Cattaneo (Ita) Soudal Quick-Step, +23s
5. Edoardo Affini (Ita) Visma-Lease a Bike, +24s
6. Jay Vine (Aus) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, +37s
7. Luke Plapp (Aus) Jayco-AlUla, +44s
8. Marco Frigo (Ita) Israel-Premier Tech, +47s
9. Michael Hepburn (Aus) Jayco-AlUla, +50s
10. Xabier Azparren (Spa) Q36.5 Pro Cycling, +54s

General classification after stage 10

1. Isaac Del Toro (Mex) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, in 34:11:37
2. Juan Ayuso (Spa) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, +25s
3. Antonio Tiberi (Ita) Bahrain Victorious, +1:01
4. Simon Yates (GBr) Visma-Lease a Bike, +1:03
5. Primož Roglič (Slo) Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, +1:18
6. Brandon McNulty (USA) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, +2:00
7. Adam Yates (GBr) UAE Team Emirates-XRG, +2:06
8. Giulio Ciccone, (Ita) Lidl-Trek, +2:07
9. Richard Carapaz (Ecu) EF Education-EasyPost, +2:10
10. Thymen Arensman (Ned) Ineos Grenadiers, +2:27