Julian Alaphilippe goes to the limit again but fails to bring Giro d'Italia triumph: "I gave it my all"

Julian Alaphilippe wants to win a stage at this year's Giro d'Italia and he is ruthless in his attempts. Into Napoli he gave it another shot, but came up short of the win he's been looking for.

“The attack wasn’t planned, but I found myself in a good position on the climb, noticed that the bunch was nervous, so I decided to try something," the former World Champion said in a press release. Alaphilippe launched an attack with 27 kilometers to go on the penultimate hilltop of the day, bringing along a group with him.

Eventually only him and compatriot Ewen Costiou survived up front, and they moved along into the final climb where he was ultimately left alone. It was a valiant effort, but he was ultimately caught close to the summit as other riders moved off the front with Jhonatan Narváez being the most dangerous one. "I gave it my all, but in the end, I missed a bit to stay away," he admits.

Alaphilippe hence, after two days in the breakaway, has given it another strong go but has not yet taken the win that would complete his Grand Tour tryptic. "I am happy with my shape, I enjoy the race and I am also content with how I feel," he adds however. "Now I’m looking forward to a nice rest day, after which I will keep trying. As I said before, the race is still long."