Nacer Bouhanni was the big favourite to win the final stage of the Giro d'Italia but the Frenchman could only manage fourth. Knowing that a crash could see him lose the points jersey, however, he decided to take no risks and so secured the prestigious tunic at the end of the first grand tour he has finished.

Since Marcel Kittel left the race, Nacer Bouhanni has been unbeaten in the sprints at the Giro d'Italia and this naturally made him the favourite to take a fourth victory in the final stage to Trieste. Desite being led out by his teammate Sebastien Chavanel, however, he could only manage fourth.

The disappointment was not not too big though as he had entered the stage with a clear focus on the points jersey. At the start of the stage, he led Giacomo Nizzolo by 26 points and after scoring 12 points in the intermediate sprint, he increased his advantage to 38.

If Nizzolo won the stage, he had to finish in the top 11 and so there still was a risk that he would lose the jersey at the very end of the race. Hence, he entered the sprint with a focus more on the points classification than on the stage win.

"In the sprint, I did not take any risks," he said. "I was afraid of crashing. I came to the Giro to try to win a stage. In the first week I did not think about the red jersey but it became an objective as the race went on.

"I wore it for two weeks and I got a taste for it. I did not know how I would handle the hard final week in the mountains, but I did everything with my teammates to keep the red jersey and take it to Trieste. To finish my first Grand Tour with three stage wins and the jersey is exceptional. "