On the last ascent, the Passerino Pass, Rein Taaramae and Christopher Juul-Jensen held a lead of over a minute and look good to go all the way. Then, Alessandro De Marchi and Joe Dombrowski attacked with just under five kilometres to go and managed to catch them. With three kilometres to go, Dombrowski pounced and pulled away for a magnificent solo victory. This marks the American's first victory since winning the sixth stage of the 2019 Tour of Utah.
"I was feeling good in the last 50km, just trying not to do too much work and be a bit conservative because I knew the last climb was really tough. It was a big group and I knew De Marchi was one of the stronger guys so I followed him and on the last climb I was able to get the gap and take the win. I didn't quite get enough time to take the leaders jersey but I am delighted with the stage win."
-Joe Dombrowski. Stage 4 winner, 2nd on GC.
"Last night, I looked at the GC and saw that I was still 12th overall. I joked with my sports director Caludio Cozzi that I would try to take the jersey tomorrow and look what happened!
When the three riders go away on the descent and quickly opened up a big gap, I thought that it might be over. But luckily, we started to take back time on them and at the bottom of the last climb, I knew that it would be possible to catch them. Dombrowski was very strong and I just did my best to stay close to him and secure the pink jersey. When I crossed the line, I still wasn't sure if I had made it but then I saw my team coming to me smiling and I realized what had happened.
It's an incredible feeling. I have been waiting 10 years for this. To wear the pink jersey is the dream of every cyclist, especially the Italian riders. Now I just want to celebrate with my teammates and enjoy my day in pink tomorrow."
-Alessandro De Marchi
"You did an amazing, amazing ride. You are very deserving to wear the Maglia Rosa! We are making history with our first leader's jersey in a Grand Tour, a spectacular achievement that I knew we could do."
-Sylvan Adams. Co-owner Israel Start-up Nation
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