Tom Pidcock launched a late attack to win the Milano-Torino race on the 150th anniversary of the first edition of the world’s oldest classic.
The Pinarello-Q36.5 rider was making his debut in the Italian one-day race and went clear during the final 600m to win its 106th edition.
The 26-year-old double Olympic mountain biking champion became the second Briton to clinch victory in the 174km (108-mile) race, after Mark Cavendish in 2022.
Pidcock was part of a lead group of 12 riders on the final Superga climb, which whittled the contenders down to five.
He attacked with 600m remaining, with Tobias Halland Johannessen in pursuit, but Pidcock kicked again with 400m left to cruise to the summit finish four seconds before the Norwegian, with 2021 winner Primoz Roglic crossing a second later.
“Primoz is hard to read, he’s always in the saddle,” said Pidcock. “I was expecting him to be good there and was hesitating to attack, everyone was looking pretty strong.
“But I knew at one point I had to go. Luckily in the end I had a kick there and I could hold them off.
“A win’s a win, they’re not easy to come by, so it’s nice to get your hand in the air.”
It was Pidcock’s first win in a one-day race since the Amstel Gold Race in 2024 and his second victory of the season – having claimed a stage of the Vuelta a Andalucia last month.
Wednesday’s win also keeps the Briton in good form heading into another Italian classic on Saturday, the Milan-San Remo.