Arnaud Démare's first win of the season took time, but the 30-year old landed a big one as his debut triumph of 2022 as he conquered today's stage of the Giro d'Italia in dominant fashion.
"Obviously I'm very happy, yes. I'm very happy. The victory was delayed, but that's cycling," Démare told in a post-race interview. The Frenchman is one of the most successful sprinters of this generation, however he had not won a bunch sprint since last year's La Route d'Occitanie.
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With the team's climbers focusing on the Tour de France, the team gave Démare the liberty to have his full leadout present at the Giro where he had won five stages in the past. Today, he turned it into six, as Groupama-FDJ raced collectively well. The sprinter was dropped in the ascent to Portella Mandrazzi after Caleb Ewan and Mark Cavendish, however the small gaps allowed the team to ride back into the pack.
"It was a difficult day. The climb was difficult, but my teammates brought me back on the descent so well. It went very, very fast," he added. The sprint itself looked chaotic, however with the lack of the main leadouts Ramon Sinkeldam managed to pierce through and launch Démare into his first win of the season in Messina.
“The sprint went well for me. The team worked well for me and I was patient, I waited for the right moment to launch my sprint," he concluded. Tomorrow will be a new opportunity, however without the pressure, Groupama may find a way to make more wins flow throughout the race - with Démare now also in the lead of the points classification.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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