"Joshua Tarling is the top contender" - Wout van Aert starts Giro d'Italia TT without any expectations
Cycling
After finally taking the first win of his season last weekend on stage 9 of the 2025 Giro d'Italia, Wout van Aert is full of confidence at the moment. Ahead of the stage 10 individual time trial though, Team Visma | Lease a Bike insists that there are no expectations for the Belgian against the clock.
“We don’t really have any specific expectations for this time trial,” Team Visma | Lease a Bike's sports director Marc Reef explained to Het Laatste Nieuws from the startline of stage 10. “We’re simply aiming to ride the best time trial possible. Wout will give it his all, and then we’ll see where that gets us.”
These comments from Reef echo a similar vibe as those given by Van Aert himself ahead of the time trial, with the 30-year-old insisting he's not among the standout contenders to take another stage win this afternoon. “It’s very straightforward and flat,” Van Aert analyses in his own pre-stage interview. “Since my last time trial didn’t go the way I’d hoped, I’m definitely not starting as the favourite. Joshua Tarling is the top contender again, and this course should suit him even better than the one he won in Albania.”
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🇮🇹 #GirodItalia
— Team Visma | Lease a Bike (@vismaleaseabike) May 20, 2025
Today’s battlefield. 😎 pic.twitter.com/3n6hUECaIl
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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