“My legs exploded" - Fabio Jakobsen notably absent from first bunch sprint of 2024 Giro d'Italia
Cycling
In the first opportunity for the sprinters at the 2024 Giro d'Italia, Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL's powerhouse sprinter, Fabio Jakobsen was notably absent from the finale, crossing the line in 130th position.
“I had to let go of the wheels 500 meters from the top. My legs exploded,” the 27-year-old Dutchman explained in his post-stage interview with Eurosport, referring to the short, sharp climb that strung things out in the peloton with just over 3km to go as Tadej Pogacar and Geraint Thomas tried their luck on the attack.
Read also
In the end, it was Jakobsen's teammate, Tobias Lund Andresen who sprinted for Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL, finishing a creditable 5th. “We agreed that Tobi could take his chance. He was super good, it's a shame he just couldn't win,” Jakobsen assesses. “Of course I prefer to sprint myself. But if it's not for me, it's for him.”
“We knew it was going to be tough today. I'm doing my best and now on to Tuesday. Tomorrow it will be the same final, but the slope will be a bit shorter," the six-time Grand Tour stage winner concludes. "We're just going to try again.”
Read also

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.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- ❤️Lozza15-11-2026
- The greatest ever is a crazy claim. But in discussions about sport in our local media, among people with no particular interest in cycling, he has been the first person they've thought of when giving examples of exceptional athletes.Hills3315-11-2026
- Urska may be less keen on a cafe if keeping it afloat will fall to her, so maybe just a nice dream!Hills3315-11-2026
- Raise thine hand if the money you have made for retirement slips away on poor investments.Most of us will outlive our financial comforts because we don't have the financial acumen to ensure a comfortable lifelong retirement and that is a statistical fact not my opinion.Many millionaires have pissed their money away or had it taken away by so called conniving "financial advisors".The world of wealth is a dangerous place that most of us will never experience nor appreciate.
Brucegel15-11-2026 - You are interested in Pogi for one reason only, you feel like you are somehow related because you share some vague geographical identity. Other than that you have very little interest in cycling as all your posts show, if it can’t be connected to Pogi you have nothing to post. That said, recent activity here shows we are attracting quite a crowd from his region.Jumpyjohn15-11-2026
- From knowing past cycling stars with shops I can only say, think it through. Not only is it mundane after a while but it really doesn’t take you out of the limelight, in the end you’ll be trying to stay away from the place yourself whilst all your fans keep coming for you.Jumpyjohn15-11-2026
- Careful investment? I think he can live very comfortably with zero investments, what does he need more? The world would do well if more people set a target for how much they need or would make them “happy” and then stop worrying about perpetually having to make more.Jumpyjohn15-11-2026
- Yes, Roglic could theoretically have beaten Sepp. Jonas must have had complete confidence that he could come back and win the Vuelta another year. Visma had not allowed Roglic to ride the Tour that year, so his future did not look so bright, despite his narrow Giro win..Hills3315-11-2026
- So far, a good series about riders before my time, even if the text feels AI generated like so much on this site. About the rider, he seems like one of many who are active fan favorites but don’t survive in the stories of cycling, a few decades later - I didn’t really know anything about him and this was a good read, thank you!RidesHills15-11-2026
- A calm, honest documentary, a bit of hagiography but mostly not too much. When he talks about a coffee shop, it aligns with several things in his world - he might want calm, but he does (more than a little bit) have someone near him (his fiancee) who makes sure that things happen the way he expects. Many atheletes have retired only to find out just how much others were taking care of their lives for them. If they work out (I'm old, things happen), I am sure it will take a renegotiation, which is a good thing. I truly enjoyed watching it, seeing him, seeing her, seeing the whole system built around him.RidesHills15-11-2026
Loading
What a finale!🤯 @TobiasLund_ sent it early from 200m to go and almost held on for the win, just getting passed in the finale and taking 5th place.👊🏻 A top 5 in your first Grand Tour, congrats Tobi! 👏🏻 #KeepChallenging #GirodItalia🇮🇹
Write a comment








