Tadei Pogachar may not have won the pink jersey on the first day of the 2024 Giro d'Italia, but he was still a contender for first place in GC, and in a fierce attack in the closing stages, he finished second behind stage winner Jonatan Narvaez (Ineos Grenadiers) and Max Schachmann (Bora-Hansgrohe), and succeeded in making an important statement of intent by finishing in third place behind the stage winner.

As widely expected, the organizers' decision this spring to insert the steep, unclassified climb of Bibio di San Vito into the first stage was decisive for Pogachar's master plan.

However, with only 1km of climbing, there was only so much a rider as Pogachar could do, no matter how steep the sections were.

In addition, the fact that Narvaez was stuck to the rear wheel throughout the climb complicated things considerably for the leader of UAE Team Emirates, who was looking for a stage win. Furthermore, Schachmann's bridging on the subsequent descent made it almost certain that the finale would be a three-man sprint contest.

Pogachar was third in the dash and led the sprint from a position too far back to contend for his first Giro stage win.

It was a long, frustrating, and emotional day. Pogachar woke up early for a 7:00 a.m. anti-doping test. He wore a black armband to the race in honor of a 15-year-old rider on the Pogi Team Development Team who died in a kayaking accident. He wanted to show his condolences by winning this stage.

After the stage, Pogachar did not talk about the stage after warming up briefly on the rollers.

"It was my first day in the Giro, a short, fast stage, and I tried to take control," Pogachar said later in a statement.

"Unfortunately it wasn't our day, but I still think we did a good job.

However, the UAE leader and his two pursuers were 10 seconds ahead of the chasing pack of just 18 riders, and some key rivals like Romain Bardet (dsm-Firmenich PostNL) were already in trouble.

Not only that, but Sunday's 11km in Oropa, with its challenging climb and summit finish, is sure to provide more room for a more important statement of intent--and perhaps a pink jersey win for Pogachar.

"The first day is always 50-50, with some riders struggling and others in good shape. [I think tomorrow is the right stage. But I think it will be a good Giro."

Pogachar's ability to drop all of his GC rivals, even on such a short climb, strongly suggests that he is a top overall contender. And speculation about his team's overall strength in the Giro d'Italia would not have been weakened by the relatively limited support he received from his team in the final kilometers. [Perhaps in part because of the excellent job done by UAE Team Emirates in reducing the lead group to 30 riders at Superga and Colle Maddalena. However, when the late wave of attackers left before San Vito, the stage appeared to be temporarily out of the UAE team's control.

Pogachar's solo run on San Vito nearly quelled that potential uprising, but even if Pogachar had pulled away from all GC rivals by the summit, Narvaez remained attached to his rear wheel. And questions about his team support, at least in the short term, will also continue to drift.

"On the last climb, unfortunately we had to go up from the bottom, but Narvaez was very strong today. But Narvaez was very strong today," Pogachar recalled.

"I gave it my all, but I lost the GC rider. But when I got to the top of the climb and Narvaez was still with me, I knew it would be hard to beat him in the sprint."

"I was also a little nervous because it had been a long time since I had done a sprint with three riders. But Narvaez was clearly faster. I didn't have many chances, but anyway I did really well today."

UAE team manager Mauro Gianetti downplayed the significance of Pogachar's isolation from his teammates in the finale, saying, "It was better to be dropped than to spend energy just to stay there after they finished the job."

"This is the first stage and it's a long way to Rome, but the riders who did the work today know that the Giro doesn't end today, it's just beginning.

Globally, Gianetti was as upbeat as his star rider about what a stage it has been for UAE Team Emirates. Even if the gap to his rivals was in seconds rather than minutes, there is no doubt that in terms of psychological blows, the first stage left Pogachal's rivals facing a real uphill battle to beat him.

"It was a good, tough stage," Gianetti told Cycling News. 'Taddei tried to win, but Narvaez was too strong.' But Taddei was already showing good form and it was important to show this sign."