"It will be hard, though, because Jonas Vingegaard is quite close" - Giulio Ciccone saves KOM jersey but remains focused
Cycling
Giulio Ciccone has had a perfect storm of events keeping him in the KOM jersey after the Tour de France's queen stage. The lead is small, but the Lidl - Trek rider continues to hold on to it with only one mountain stage left.
"It’s been a good outcome for the stage. Today we just focused on following our plan and go full gas for the KOM points in the first three climbs," the Italian said in a post-race interview. "Skjelmose did great job, he put me in the breakaway and I had good legs. I spent almost everything chasing points in the first three climbs, so I decided to ride the final climb just saving energy."
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Ciccone managed to bring many points from those early day climbs, boosting his score. However then on the Col de la Loze, the ascent with the most points on offer in the whole race, he couldn't stick with the front riders anymore. But luckily for him, his breakaway companions managed to hold off Jonas Vingegaard from taking the main score. Felix Gall instead jumped to second and both are close, but having distributed the points between both saw Ciccone on top at the end of the day.
88 points on his bank, whilst Gall has 82 and Vingegaard has 81. Stage 20 into Le Markstein will feature plenty ascents where his classification will be decided. "We are close to winning the Mountains classification now. It will be hard, though, because Jonas Vingegaard is quite close. Yet I am going to focus on recovery and then think of strategy for the next few days," he concluded.
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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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#CiccoPimpa continues! #TDF2023
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