Giro d'Italia 2022 Stage 4

Cycling season is in full effect with Stage 4 of the Avola to Etna taking place here today.

These inclines and changes in altitude will undoubtedly test the cyclists and push them to their limits. This is a tough race with mostly flat stages, but after a rest day, the cyclists are back at it on what will be the most challenging and trying stage so far in their journey today. How to Watch Stage 4: Avola to Etna today:

Follow our live updates as the Giro d'Italia moves to Sicily for Stage 4 and the first mountain stage as a tough 23km climb up Mount Etna awaits for the ...

Despite the danger of being overwhelmed, his positioning was perfect and the speed was too high for anyone to surpass. Van der Poel won't give up the pink jersey without a fight and he zips clear of the pack with another rider in pursuit of the seven leaders up the road. The peloton is currently trundling through the outskirts of Avola ahead of the official start. And there's another crash near the back of the bunch! This is the antithesis from the two road stages in Hungary when the breakaways were easily decided and almost exclusively formed by riders from Drone Hopper-Androni Giacattoli. We're in for a big battle. With a flurry of moves going off the front, a small crash in the pack held up a lot of riders including Alejandro Valverde and stage 2 winner Simon Yates, who appeared to bash his knee. The Colombian has pulled out of the Giro because of a hip injury. No echelons have yet formed but the pace is up and the gap for the break has come down to 7:10 in a very short space of time. The gap is down to 7:40 for the break. 75km to go: The pink jersey drops back to answer a call of nature and speak to his Alpecin-Fenix DS. It's going to be fascinating to see how he tackles the final climb to Etna. Should the peloton move within striking distance of the break, the Dutchman may decide to go deep to defend the maglia rosa. 31km to go: Andrii Ponomar, the youngest rider in the race, hits the deck alongside Ben Zwiehoff of Bora-Hansgrohe. Drone Hopper's Ponomar is the only Ukrainian in this Giro and he rides with the burden of knowing that his father is currently fighting in the defence of the Donbass region in his homeland. 24km to go: Stefano Oldani takes the three bonus seconds at the second intermediate sprint at Biancavilla which he passes through with a lead of around 40 seconds on his fellow escapees.

The peloton face on the first summit finish of the race at Mount Etna.

There's still some (unclassified) climbing left to come in the middle of this stage. Nine minutes up to the breakaway. Ineos Grenadiers are working in the peloton currently. 11:10 for the breakaway. He waves the TV moto past. 10:25 between the break and peloton. Just a few kilometres to go until he starts Etna. Mark Cavendish and several QuickStep teammates are at the rear of the peloton. Still no real change in the overall situation. Finally, a change in the race situation. He sits on the grass after going down. The pace isn't high.

The first attack has come from the breakaway. Rein Taaramae (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux) instigated the move, before Stefano Oldani (Alpecin-Fenix) ...

Rick Zabel (Israel-Premier Tech), yes the German sprinter and son of Erik, will be dressed in the maglia azzurra, or blue jersey, as leader in the mountains classification. Based on the assumption that Van der Poel loses the maglia rosa today – I think that's a safe assumption – then Yates would probably love it for a breakaway to clip off up the road and take the stage win, so don't be surprised if you see somebody like Lorenzo Fortunato (Eolo-Kometa) or Alessandro de Marchi (Israel-Premier Tech) working hard in the early part of the stage in an effort to make a breakaway. Additional media duties and being the centre of attention where every move, comment or quip is analysed to within an inch of its life can be draining. Cavendish, of course, will not be thinking about the stage win today, but he will need to complete the stage within the time limit if he wants to continue racing on Wednesday which may end up in a bunch gallop. At the other end of the race, there is now a 14-man breakaway that leads the race by 8min 20sec. Weaving through arrow Sicilian roads with large paving stones and a few pinch points, number of riders crashed with some needing to drop back to the race doctor. Having completed the opening 50km of the stage, of which almost every metre has been uphill, it looks as if Mark Cavendish has managed to reconnect with the peloton. The Basque is one rider down after Jan Tratnik abandoned on Sunday, but like Miguel Ángel López who pulled out earlier today, he doesn't have the best of luck and I'm sure lots of cycling fans will want to see him see well this year. The breakaway is still working well together, as it has done throughout the stage, after passing through Paternò where Lilian Calmejane took the points on offer at the first of two intermediate sprint points in the stage. Ukrainian rider Andrii Ponomar (Drone Hopper-Androni Giocattoli), who is the youngest rider in the race, has crashed. The Italian who has yet to win a professional race has gained a handful of seconds, while his move has created unease within the group of his former breakaway colleagues. I'm assuming they will be working for Hugh Carthy today, but they also have Simon Carr up there, with the Briton who was brought up in France a very good climber.

Lennard Kamna won the fourth stage and the overall leader is now Juan Pedro López, Spanish rider of the Trek team.

Rider (Country / Team) Rider (Country / Team) The last 9 kilometers will bring the toughest slopes, reaching a maximum of 12% incline. Despite the damage caused by the numerous lava flows and earthquakes, the city was able to re-emerge and offer visitors its extraordinary natural beauty and its modern services, hotel facilities and typical restaurants, becoming a boast of the Etna area, to the point that it has earned the nickname "Porta dell'Etna" (Etna's Gate). The Ionian coast, where Avola is located, has soft, golden beaches, freely accessible or equipped with bathing facilities, alternating with enchanting cliffs. Throughout the year, Nicolosi organizes shows and events that attract a multitude of visitors. Rider (Country / Team) Mauri Vansevenant (Belgium/Quick-Step) Lennard Kamna (Germany/Bora) Rider (Country / Team) Mauri Vansevenant (Belgium/Quick-Step) Lennard Kamna (Germany/Bora)

Lennard Kamna (Bora-Hansgrohe) emerged victorious on Mount Etna as the breakaway went the distance on Stage 4 at the Giro d'Italia.

The duo appeared to partake in some kind of negotiation, to which Kamna later inferred in his post-race interview: “Let me say it like this – maybe we had a silent agreement.” Oldani rode clear to pocket the three bonus seconds at the second intermediate sprint with 25km remaining and then opened a lead of almost a minute as the road kicked up. It came to nothing and the duo were reabsorbed just as an incident in the peloton saw a motorcycle clip the curb and take out a score of riders, most notably Roger Kluge (Lotto Soudal). A fast and furious start to the first of two Sicilian stages saw breakaway specialist Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal) try his luck from the gun. A solid performance to take third place in the time trial lifted Dumoulin’s morale on his first Grand Tour since the 2020 Vuelta and his subsequent sabbatical. Simon Yates (BikeExchange-Jayco) made light of an early crash to finish safely in a main pack of favourites which was led home by the 2019 champion Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers) 2:37 down on the winner.