Mavi Garcia (UAE Team ADQ) was relentless in his pursuit of Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar) on stage 4 of the Giro d'Italia in Cesena (open in new tab), sometimes pushing the Dutchwoman to the limit, but never backing down! She never backed down.

The two strong riders were equally matched on the day's hilly terrain, trading blows and blows on their respective demanding climbs in the final 50km, pulling away even from fellow breakaway Marta Cavalli (FDJ) in the process.

Neither woman could shake off her opponent. In the end, Garcia finished second, and van Breuten took the stage win and the maglia rosa.

"I wish I could have won today, but I am very happy with my performance. I was feeling really good today so I was confident. On the climb I was almost always in front because the road was so hard when I attacked with Annemiek van Fruten and Marta Cavalli.

Garcia, Van Fruten, and Cavalli attacked the second category, Colle del Barbotto, with 50km to go. They built a nearly 5-minute lead over the rest of the field. Cavalli was separated on the final climb by a persistent attack from Garcia and VanFleuten with 12 km to the finish.

The showdown between Garcia and Van Vleuten was reminiscent of their battles in the Emmacmén Nafaroaco Classicoa and the 2020 Strade Bianche.

"Annemiek van Vleuten tried to attack several times in the finale but was unable to escape today. Then I tried to get in front of her in the last kilometer but I couldn't make a gap," she said.

Garcia started her sprint early on a slight climb before the finish, but Van Vleuten caught and passed her on the final bend and went on to win the sprint.

Van Vleuten is now 25 seconds ahead of Garcia in second, 57 seconds ahead of Cavalli in third, and 5 minutes ahead of the chasing pack led by Elisa Longo Borghini (Trek-Segafredo) in fourth.

Garcia also leads in the mountains.

Three decisive mountain days are coming up later in the race on stage 7: Prevalle to Passo Maniva, stage 8: Rovereto to Ardeno, and stage 9: San Michele Alladige to San Lorenzo d'Orsino.

"I am very happy with this podium and I can still be in contention for the overall win. We will see what happens over the next few days. It's a positive day for me and for the whole team, and I know that I can aim for the last podium in this Giro."