Giro d’Italia 2023: Pascal Ackermann edges Stage 11, Mark Cavendish third, Tao Geoghegan Hart crashes out

The longest day of the Giro d’Italia was won by the finest of margins as Germany’s Pascal Ackermann (UAE Team Emirates) pipped Italy’s Jonathan Milan (Bahrain Victorious) in a photo finish in the 219km Stage 11 to Tortona. Ackermann sprang from the wheel of Britain’s Mark Cavendish (Astana-Qazaqstan) to round Denmark’s Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) on the home straight to hold onto his first win of the season despite a late, late surge from Milan, the maglia ciclamino.

Ad As Ackermann raised his arms aloft in celebration, Milan wagged a finger – the towering Italian perhaps suspecting he had done enough to add a second stage win in what is proving to be an impressive Grand Tour debut for the 22-year-old. Giro d'ItaliaGeoghegan Hart leaves in ambulance after freak crash, Thomas and Roglic also go down3 HOURS AGO But the photo finish saw Germany’s Ackermann awarded the win by a whisker, with Cavendish showing a welcome resurgence with a competitive third place that will fill the veteran Manxman with the belief that a 19th career win on the Giro may still happen this May.

A late crash inside the final 2km split the peloton and ended the chances of many sprinters, including Fernando Gaviria (Movistar) and Australia’s Michael Matthews (Jayco-AlUla). Although they were both caught out on the wrong side of the split, Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) retained his slender two-second lead over Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) in the battle for the pink jersey.

In the day’s major flashpoint, both Thomas and Roglic came down in a nasty fall inside the last 50km which saw Ineos Grenadier co-leader Tao Geoghegan Hart – third place in the standings going into the stage – taken to hospital for an assessment of his injuries. The 2020