“The pain is only superficial" - Remco Evenepoel reveals he suffered no lasting effects of prior crashes on stage 6 at the Giro d'Italia

After a nightmare day on stage 5 of the Giro d'Italia saw Remco Evenepoel hit the deck on multiple occasions, a much calmer stage 6 was a relief and thankfully for the Soudal - Quick-Step leader he suffered no lasting effects.

“It was a fast stage, but we were always well at the front in the descents and came in safely in the end. That's great, isn't it," the 23-year-old told the press in a post-stage interview taken immediately after the conclusion of the day's action that saw Mads Pedersen take victory from a bunch sprint after the breakaway duo of Simon Clarke and Alessandro De Marchi were caught with just 200m to go.

“I still have a stiff leg, but I have been released. That's good anyway. I don't expect it to affect me in the coming days," Evenepoel continued. News that will come as a big relief to fans of the Belgian and viewers of the Giro d'Italia in general. “The pain is only superficial. I had a good break today.”