Bradley Wiggins (Sky) got his Giro campaign off to a solid start as he finished safely in the bunch despite a nervous day marred by a number of crashes. The British team knew that the technical circuit would turn it into a tricky stage and was happy to get it out of the way as the team had very little to gain.

With a team completely focused on Bradley Wiggins' attempt to win the Giro, the Sky has decided not to include a sprinter in their line-up. Hence, today's flat opening stage of the Italian grand tour was only a risky obstacle that had to be passed as the team looks forward to the battles ahead.

The squad managed to get through the day safely and was a very visible presence near the front of the peloton throughout most of the day. Xabier Zandio, Christian Knees, Danny Pate and Salvatore Puccio were all seen spending plenty of time in the wind with Wiggins in their wheel and the Tour de France winner was never far away from the front.

A dramatic crash inside the final 3km severely affected the sprint and even though Rigoberto Uran, Zandio and Knees were all caught up behind the tumble, no one hit the deck. Hence, sports director Marcus Ljungqvist was highly satisfied at the end of a dangerous day.

“It was a tight and twisty circuit and that, in combination with the first stage of a Grand Tour and some fresh riders, was always going to be tricky," he said. "In the end it worked out okay for us. Rigo, Xabi and Christian were a bit held back but at the end of the day they made it back having stayed safe which is the main thing.”

The team now turns its attention to tomorrow's team time trial where Wiggins has the first opportunity to gain time on his rivals. The squad is certainly one of the favourites and won a similar stage in the Giro del Trentino but Ljungqvist keeps a cautious approach.

“We’re feeling good ahead of the TTT tomorrow," he added. "We’re looking to take it day by day here and now we’ve got this out of the way we can start to focus on tomorrow. We’re hoping to be in the mix.”

Starting at 15.30 you can follow the team time trial in its entirety on CyclingQuotes.com/live.