Uruguayan cycling experienced this Saturday one of the most important moments in its history. Guillermo Thomas Silva became the first runner in his country s in conquering a stage of the Giro of Italia and also in the first Uruguayan to wear the pink jersey as leader of the general classification of the competition.

The 24-year-old cyclist, a member of the XDS Astana team, won the second stage of the 109th edition of the race, held between Burgas and Veliko Tarnovo, in B ulgaria. Silva crossed the finish after 221 kilometers with a time of 5 hours, 39 minutes 25 seconds, ahead of the German Florian Stork and the Italian Giulio Ciccone.

The victory came in a sprint end after a day marked by falls, rain and multiple changes of pace. The Uruguayan celebrated in credulous barely crossed the finish line, putting his hands to his head before celebrating the most important triumph of his professional career.

"I'm in the clouds. It's only my second stage in the Giro of Italia and I've already managed to win and even keep the pink jersey," Silva said.

A bumpy stage and a frantic closing

The race had several tense moments on the Bulgarian roads. Under rainy conditions, the Italian Mirco Maestri and the Spanish Diego Pablo Sevilla took part in an early escape that ended 27 kilometers from the arrival, when they were overtook by the platoon.

Shortly after, there was a strong collective fall in a wet corner, with just over 20 kilometers to go. About 15 riders finished in the s uelo. The British Adam Yates continued the stage with blood and mud on his face, although he lost almost 14 minutes and was practically outside of the fight for the title.

The cyclists Jay Vine and Marc Soler abandoned the competition after being transported by ambulance after the accident.

Meanwhile, Jonas Vingegaard, one of the favorites prior to the start of the Giro, avoided the fall and tried to take advantage of the mountainous stretch on his way to the finish line. ra launch an attack. The Danish joined the leading group in the final kilometres, although he was finally overtaken by the platoon 300 meters from the arrival.

Silva found the ideal stage there. His teammate Christian Scaroni set him up for the definitive sprint and the Uruguayan managed to hold the lead until the finish line.

“I have to thank Christian Scaroni, who helped me both in chasing the leaders and in preparing the sprint,” said Silva. “I don't think I'll forget this day.”

With the result, the runner born in Maldonado was in front of the general classification with accumulated time of 9h00'23", four or seconds ahead of Florian Stork and the Colombian Egan Bernal. Vingegaard appears in position 15 ten seconds from the leader.

The third stage will be held this Sunday on a mostly flat course of 175 kilometers between Plovdiv and Sofia, capital of Bulgaria. The Giro of Italia will conclude next May 31 in Rome.