"It was a perfect day for us and we took advantage of it" - Aurélien Paret-Peintre takes first Grand Tour stage win at the Giro d'Italia

Aurélien Paret Peintre has ensured that the Giro d'Italia of the AG2R Citroën will already be considered a success thanks to a great stage victory that he achieved on stage 4.

He got the right breakaway and was the smartest and strongest to win and move up to third overall in the general classification. "My main objective this year was the Giro d'Italia, so I have trained a lot for today, for these 3 weeks, we knew that today was a day for breaks," says the Frenchman in his post-stage interview. "It was an important day for the team, we have come for that and for the Overall, it was a perfect day for me, I'm very happy, it was very hard."

He was asked if it was difficult to collaborate with Andreas Leknessund in the final kilometres of the stage. The Frenchman however denied this, pointing out that they worked until the end and were both rewarded with a prize.

"I knew I was faster than him, we collaborated until the finish line and he has taken the pink jersey," says the AG2R Citroen Team rider. "So I think everyone is happy."