Filippo Ganna the big revelation of Milano-Sanremo: "I'm a little disappointed with second place, but I'm happy"

Filippo Ganna was not one of the bif favorites today to win Milano-Sanremo, but he has performed at an extraordinary level. The man from INEOS Grenadiers has endured with the best at the Poggio and has come close to victory.

The transalpine, time trial specialist, was with Tadej Pogacar, Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel in the final split that formed in the Poggio di Sanremo and, despite the fact that second place is not what anyone is looking for, he was happy with his performance.

"This year I have achieved many second places, but today was very special," he said in a post-race interview. "I want to thank the team for giving me great support. Yesterday at the meeting I knew that he was going to be one of the leaders. The team believed in me and I thank them."

The Italian was the first follower of Pogacar when the Slovenian launched an attack. It was a brave and impressive effort that showed Ganna's best level. He could not follow the winning attack of Mathieu van der Poel later on however. "At the end of the descent, he made a great effort. I think I put in one of my best performances ever. I'm a little disappointed with second place, but I'm happy," he admitted. 

Ganna worked in the chasing group alongside Pogacar and van Aert, however the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider managed to extend his lead over the descent. Ganna neverthess still had the legs and made a move in the final meters to finish second on the day.