Geraint Thomas "limited the damage" at time-trial, reports still lacking his best form

Geraint Thomas is a specialist in the time-trial discipline. Not coming in the best form into the race he was already expecting a modest performance, he was left to limit the damage on the opening day as he rode to ninth on the road.

“I started a little too hard and I paid for it. I then tried to manage my energies to do the climb well, but I didn't go the way I wanted," Thomas said in a post-race interview. "I was missing something. I think it was an average start. I tried to do my best, but I couldn't feel at my best."

The Welshman has throughout his career had the discipline as one of the biggest weapons in his arsenal, and the kilometers against the clock were a big influence for him to choose the Corsa Rosa this year. However, after not coming into the race with his best form due to illness he experienced earlier in the year, he could only ride to ninth on the day, 55 seconds down on Remco Evenepoel, but also behind several of his rivals in the battle for the podium.

“I think I limited the damage, but I could have done at least a couple of corners better," he explains. "I was too aggressive at the beginning, but the Giro d'Italia is still very long. My season so far hasn't been great, but there are still 20 days to go."

He will have one more flat time-trial where he can take advantage of his abilities but ultimately it'll come down to the final week to decide the race. As many others after a brutal performance by Remco Evenepoel, Thomas prefers to focus on the big picture and not allow himself to be under pressure.

“We know he's doing very well in this period, he's been good. However, we must bear in mind that there are still 20 stages to go. Tomorrow's? Seeing the course, he seems to call for a sprint finish," he concluded.