'I prepared for this the whole winter' - Mads Pedersen and Lidl-Trek ride plan to perfection to triumph at Giro d'Italia

A lot of teamwork and a perfectly-judged plan delivered Pedersen to the pink jersey on stage one

Mads Pedersen and his Lidl-Trek team on stage one of the Giro d'Italia
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Asked on television after his victory on stage one of the Giro d'Italia what the plan had been, Mads Pedersen was reasonably curt.

"Like we did, you can see it on TV," the Lidl-Trek rider explained, edging on patronising his interviewer. "That was the exact plan, to push really hard on the climbs, make it a small group, and then a sprint at the end."

"I was not sure that I was able to win, it’s never given that you win a race, there are so many strong riders in this peloton," he continued. "Everyone here is in top shape, and if you're too confident when race starts, maybe it backfires. You have to treat it with respect, but believe in yourself and the team. You know in a sprint like this with Wout in the group, you have to treat that with respect, he can also win the race so it’s never a given before passing the finish line."

"We wanted to keep such high pace, that's why Cico [Giulio Ciccone] took over," he added. "When he goes that fast, if you want to attack from that it’s really chapeau. The GC guys don’t win the Giro today, I would be surprised if they wanted to attack, especially with the tempo Cico did, and then they didn’t because Cico was riding that fast."

"When you start with a win on stage one, can’t sit back and enjoy the next 20 days, we’re here to keep trying, to win as much as possible," Pedersen said. "I'm happy to start like that, it's absolutely amazing, but I'm hungry for more, I worked really hard to be in shape for this race so I won't sit up now, I'll keep fighting."

"I wasn’t really a kid to watch bike races, I had too much energy, I was riding my bike or doing something else," he continued. "This is one of biggest races in the world, so to have the leader's jersey in a race like this is really amazing. It’s the cherry on the cake from stage win, and absolutely amazing to be able to say I have the pink jersey."

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Adam Becket
News editor

Adam is Cycling Weekly’s news editor – his greatest love is road racing but as long as he is cycling, he's happy. Before joining CW in 2021 he spent two years writing for Procycling. He's usually out and about on the roads of Bristol and its surrounds.

Before cycling took over his professional life, he covered ecclesiastical matters at the world’s largest Anglican newspaper and politics at Business Insider. Don't ask how that is related to riding bikes.

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