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Paul Magnier Wins Giro d’Italia Opening Stage After Dramatic Sprint Crash

Posted : 09 May 2026

French cyclist Paul Magnier secured the opening stage of the Giro d’Italia in dramatic fashion after a major crash disrupted the final sprint in Burgas, Bulgaria.

The 22-year-old Soudal-Quick Step rider earned his first Grand Tour stage victory and claimed the race leader’s pink jersey after narrowly edging past Norway’s Tobias Lund Andresen in a tense finish. Britain’s Ethan Vernon completed the podium in third place.

After 147 kilometres of racing, the peloton entered Burgas together under cloudy conditions as sprinters prepared for the expected bunch finish. However, chaos unfolded in the closing metres when the road suddenly narrowed.

With approximately 700 metres remaining, a compression in the pack caused a huge collision involving around 20 riders. Several cyclists crashed heavily into barriers, forcing spectators nearby to quickly move away from the impact zone.

The incident blocked much of the road with fallen riders and damaged bikes, leaving only a small group of competitors able to continue the sprint for victory.

Italian sprint favourite Jonathan Milan managed to avoid the worst of the crash and attempted a late charge toward the front, but he could only finish fourth after running out of distance.

Magnier later admitted the final section had been difficult due to the narrow roads and expressed delight at defeating some of the sport’s top sprinters to claim the biggest win of his career so far.

Dutch rider Dylan Groenewegen appeared to suffer injuries in the incident and crossed the finish line cautiously after being caught in the crash.

The overall favourites for the general classification, including two-time Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard, were not affected by the accident and finished safely without losing time under the race’s three-kilometre rule.

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