After two days in the mountains of the mainland and a rest day, the Giro Donne entered its final eighth stage on the island of Sardinia. Rolling hills awaited the riders on what was expected to be a sprint finish.

With Lorena Vives, the fastest woman in the race, leaving the race on stage 6 to compete in the Tour de France Femme, the sprint contest was much more open than it would have been with a European champion.

Chloe Dygert, the recently crowned U.S. national champion, was one of the pre-stage favorites to win and rode strong into the finish as her Canyon-SRAM teammates led her into the sprint.

However, when it came down to a drag race before the finish, Dygert was unable to match the speed of Vives' teammate Blanca Vas, and the Hungarian champion took the stage win.

Digert, who went into the Giro Donne dreaming of both a GC and a stage win, crashed in the rain-canceled opening ITT and bruised his sacrum.

"The team did a really good leadout for me," he said. It was a very hot and hard day, so to be on the podium at the end is great for us."

Daigert has one last chance for a stage win in Sunday's final ninth stage, from Sassari to Olbia, a stage with a similar profile to stage 8. The 26-year-old, however, did not declare her intention to win the stage, citing an injury sustained in the first stage.

"I guess it depends. I think I'm still fighting the injuries from the crash on the first day, so it depends on what I do for the team for one day, for me for one day, for tomorrow," she said.

Stage 8 was Daigert's second podium in her debut Giro Donne, as the American continues her return to WorldTour racing after a series of injuries and health issues that have plagued her career since 2019.

She has already scored a win in the second stage of the RideLondon Classic this season and has won national titles in both the road race and time trial.