The Giro continues after the team time trial with a stage of 177 kilometres from Albenga to Genova. The stage will head into the hilly hinterland for a while, but soon the riders get back to the coast. It’s expected that after two local laps of 9.5 kilometres a sprint will decide about the victory.

Lotto Soudal aims for the win with André Greipel.

“The victory of Orica-GreenEdge in the team time trial is an advantage for the sprint teams," he said. "They will want to keep the pink jersey the next days and will take their responsibility. For us the race starts at 20 to 30 kilometres from the finish. The local laps are an advantage, because you can make a better estimation of the finale.

"When you go to a Grand Tour as a sprinter, you know when your days are coming. Today is such a day. Of course there is some pressure then, but we’re experienced enough to handle that. Numerous teams will want to contest the sprint; it’s important to survive the chaos of a first sprint, be in the right position and try to finish it off.”

"We are ready for tomorrow when Greipel has a chance to win so it was a good warm-up today, We will approach it with the idea that he has to win. It is very simple," his teammate Lars Bark told TV2 Sport.

"There is a team that has won this team time trial and they want to defend the jersey. Together with them and other team, we have to see how we can make it happen. I am sure that we will succeed."