Bertagnolli shrugs off heat to win Giro stage
FAENZA, Italy (Reuters) - Italian Leonardo Bertagnolli broke from the pack late on to win the 15th stage of the Giro d'Italia in sweltering heat on Sunday.
The Italian completed the 161-km route from Forli in four hours 18 minutes and 34 seconds with Belgium's Serge Pauwels of the Cervelo team second and Marco Pinotti coming in third.
Rabobank's Russian rider Denis Menchov, 16th on the day, retained the leader's jersey and is 34 seconds ahead of 2007 winner Danilo Di Luca and 45 in front of Astana's U.S. rider Levi Leipheimer.
Pre-race favourite Ivan Basso, the 2006 champion, stayed just over three minutes behind the leader.
Seven-times Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, competing in his first Giro after recovering from a broken collarbone, was nearly three minutes behind Bertagnolli and lies 13th overall.
The American is almost 8-1/2 minutes adrift of Menchov having returned to cycling after more than three years in retirement.
Monday's 16th stage is a 237 kms tough mountainous ride from Pergola to Monte Petrano. The three-week race, celebrating its centenary year, finishes in Rome on Sunday.
© Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved
One Year Later
A year after militants laid siege to Mumbai, the country still remains very vulnerable. Full Article | Full Coverage
Liberhan Commission Report
The government published a long awaited report, recently leaked, accusing BJP leaders of a role in the 1992 destruction of the Babri mosque in Ayodhya. Full Article
