Competition kept Bardet alive, will they face the consequences in the toughest Giro week?

The Frenchman came to the Giro with aspirations for the general classification, especially after he showed excellent form in the Tour of the Alps and confirmed this with a second place at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. However, things went awry for Bardet during the opening weekend, as he suffered from stomach issues and consequently lost minutes in the first two challenging stages.

A successful general classification result seemed difficult, but Bardet was part of the breakaway on day eight and ten, which allowed him to regain valuable time. He also performed well in the time trial on day seven and entered the time trial on day fourteen as sixth in the GC. The completely flat race against the clock was clearly less suited to Bardet's skills. He lost 3 minutes and 24 seconds to winner Filippo Ganna, and thereby one and a half to two minutes to many of his competitors. He dropped from sixth to eighth in the GC.

"If I’m honest, I’m a bit disappointed about today. I had hoped for more," said an honest Bardet after his time trial, via the official channels of DSM-Firmenich PostNL. "I need to put this behind me and look forward to the next chapter of the Giro, as we head into the high mountains. There is still a lot to race for in the upcoming stages, and I am motivated to keep fighting with the team."

This sentiment is also echoed by Gijs Leemreize, when talking to IDLProCycling.com. A week ago, the 24-year-old Dutchman complained about physical discomfort, just like many riders of DSM-Firmenich PostNL who struggled with their health in the first weeks. That seems to be over now. "I felt much better after the first rest day and I was already part of a breakaway. That good feeling is coming back and with the tough stages still to come, I hope to still be of value."

A good Leemreize is just what Bardet needs in the mountain stages yet to come. Starting with Sunday, when there are 222 kilometers and over 5,700 vertical meters waiting. "I am looking forward to it, and to see how the race will unfold. Will there be tactical games, or will the race be well controlled? We are still aiming for a solid GC result with Romain. The classification really has yet to be determined, with the differences expected to be larger in the final week. There’s still a lot possible, that’s what we’re going for," said an ambitious Leemreize.

Additionally, Bardet appears eager to the group, which was already hit hard in the first half of the Giro by the loss of half the sprint train, including sprint leader Fabio Jakobsen and very early also lead-out Bram Welten. "Romain feels just fine and is looking forward to it. I think there are still opportunities. Most of those coughs have been weeded out of the team now, although Julius (van den Berg, ed.) is not entirely fit yet."