Michael Rogers (Tinkoff-Saxo) completed an excellent Giro d'Italia when he won the most presstigous stage of the race on the feared Monte Zoncolan. Knowing the history and difficulty of the climb, the Australian was overwhelmed to have written his name onto the list of winners on the mythical mountain.

A little more than a month ago Michael Rogers didn't know if he would ever ride a professional bike race again after he had been provisionally suspended for a positive clembuterol test taken at the Japan Cup. A little more than a week ago, he marked his comeback in the grandest fashion when he won the Giro d'Italia stage to Savona.
 
Today, however, he topped that performance when he won the most prestigious stage of the Italian grand tour, conquering the feared an excessively steep Monte Zoncolan. The big Australian overcame the gravity and the tinier climbers in the 18-rider breakaway that decided the stage, to take an impressive solo victory.
 

In the finale, Rogers had escaped with Francesco Bongiorno but when a stupid spectator took out the young Italian, he was left to battle steep gradients on his own. The Australian held on to take his second grand tour victory less than two weeks after taking the first one.

"It was such a hard climb and I was battling myself at a number of times," he said. "But on the final bit of the slope when I was riding with Bongiorno, I believed it was possible to pull it through and when I discovered I was alone, there was no other way to go but head down, full speed.

"I'm really honored to win here on this legendary climb in these fantastic surroundings. We knew this was our final chance of winning and we pulled it off.

“At the meeting this morning, Bjarne Riis said he wanted 2 riders in the breakaway. I was the last to get in. Nico Roche did great work and we found ourselves at the foot of the Zoncolan with a good advantage, and I managed the situation from there.

“I didn’t know anything about the time gaps. I had no information from the car, and they probably had limited information from race radio. It was a time trial to the top. It’s the first time I’ve ridden up the Zoncolan, so I didn’t know it. I tried to get everything out, riding out of the seat sometimes, which isn’t easy for me. In the last 100m I knew I had it, but not before.

“At the end of the day, winning is why we do it. You always aim to be the best that you can, and winning for me is still thrill. I enjoy also the working part, being part of a team, and with the experience I have I enjoy teaching a team that’s full of energy, that I’ve found here. But at the end of the day the thrill is still winning. From the moment you know you’re going to win to the moment you cross the finish line, that’s the pinnacle of the sport, whether it’s 5 km or 5 m.