IAM Cycling continues to circle around its first victory in a major three week tour.  After the 2nd places from Sylvain Chavanel on Wednesday at Abetone and Matteo Pelucchi on Thursday at Castiglione della Pescaia, Sébastien Reichenbach succeeded in grabbing a fantastic 3rd place at the top of a 13 kilometer climb to Campitello Matese. 

As a member of the day’s break, the Swiss Reichenbach managed to stay a handful of seconds ahead of the Giro favorites at the finish line.  The day’s victory ultimately fell to the Spaniard Benat Intxausti (Movistar) ahead of Mikel Landa (Astana).  Alberto Contador ended 8th on the stage and retained his pink leader’s jersey.

Shaking his head at the finish line, and disappointed not to be able to give Michel Thétaz, the founder of IAM Cycling and CEO of IAM Funds, a prestigious victory of a grand tour magnitude, Sébastien Reichenbach could rest knowing that he had excelled during the course of a demanding day. 

“I gave everything I had in order to make the break, and in the end I got screwed by the Spanish rider.  It was not easy to get into the right break, since there were tons of guys going for it.  And the team managers asked us to be attentive, and to be among whichever group got away. 

"I found myself in the winning move, but we were sailing behind the front guys by a minute or even less.  It’s a shame because without that pressure, we could have adopted a more regular pace. 

"Then the gap widened, and I knew that the victory would be decided on the final ascent.  But I got trapped, and it will serve me as a lesson for the future.  The Spaniard refused to pull and I paced him up for 4 kilometers.  But then again, I hardly had a choice because the peloton with the favorites was coming back to us at an unbelievable speed. 

"When he attacked me, I did not have the energy to jump with him, nor to latch onto Landa when he caught me.  I still managed to hold on to 3rd place, largely because I could keep my rhythm.  I learned a lot today, and it will serve me as a useful lesson for the future. 

"After a week of this Giro, I still feel good, but I am admittedly looking forward to the rest day.  After that, there are still some stages where I could really show my strengths.”

Kjell Carlström, directeur sportif for IAM Cycling along with Thierry Marichal, revisited the attitude of the Movistar rider who eventually won the stage. 

“Sébastien showed a great deal of generosity, and the Spaniard took advantage of that, and took the victory as a result.  We don’t have to look very far to find the moral winner of the day, and I want to give him a big nod and pat on the back.  He did everything right. 

"We are still flirting with that first grand tour victory, and I hope that we will be able to get one in the bag before the end of this Giro, particularly because the guys are doing a great job.  The mood is excellent, and I don’t doubt that each one of our guys has the will and know-how to seize his chance in the coming days.”