Pieter Weening attacks to take stage and pink jersey

DUTCHMAN Pieter Weening capped a brave solo attack with victory in the fifth stage of the Giro d'Italia overnight.

Pieter Weening Giro d'Italia

DUTCHMAN Pieter Weening capped a brave solo attack with victory in the fifth stage of the Giro d'Italia overnight.

He also took the race leader's pink jersey from Britain's David Millar.

A day after the peloton held a 216 km procession to honour Belgian Wouter Weylandt, who died in a crash on Monday, there was drama aplenty on the dusty strade bianche (white roads) that peppered the last 19km of the 191 km ride under the Tuscan sun from Piombino to Orvieto.

It was on one of the few paved sections in the finale, around 15km from the finish, that Weening's teammate, Tom-Jelle Slagter, caused brief anxiety when he fell hard and lay prone as his physios called for the medical car.

Still conscious, Slagter was given medical attention at the scene before being taken to hospital.

It was also a tough day for leader Millar who struggled across the line nearly three minutes behind Weening after suffering from allergies and falling on the intermediate sprint.

“A very difficult day!” said Millar. “I always suffer from allergies in this part of Italy, so it's not going too well. I'm not very successful in the Giro, but it's already good to have worn the pink jersey.”

He added: “It was a stupid fall. We knew the strade bianche would be dangerous. It's important to make sure the ambulances are there.”

An earlier solo breakaway by BMC's Martin Kohler came to an end around 10 km from the finish after Weening and Frenchman John Gadret of AG2R had pulled away from a reduced peloton.

Weening then left both riders in the white dust to go on and build the foundations of a deserved victory.

Eight seconds in his wake Colombia's Fabio Duarte dominated the sprint for second place with compatriot Jose Serpa in third and Frenchman Christophe Le Mevel in fourth.

Weening now has a two-second overall lead on Italian Marco Pinotti of HTC-Highroad, who wore the pink jersey into stage two following his team's domination of the opening stage team time trial.

The 30-year-old last won a stage on a Grand Tour at the 2005 Tour de France when he was given the benefit of a photo finish ahead of German Andreas Kloden.

“My aim was to win a stage on the Giro,” said Weening. “My Tour win was six years ago. But for a rider like me it's not easy to win, I can't count on a sprint. On this surface today I thought the best strategy was to attack.”

He added: “Naturally I thought of Wouter Weylandt. It's the first time I've been confronted by such a drama on a race. It's dangerous but the conditions on the “strade bianche” were good. We know that there is always a risk in cycling.”

The sixth stage on tonight (AEST) is a 216 km ride from Orvieto to Fiuggi on mainly flat roads, giving the sprinters a rare chance to shine.

AFP