Giro D'Italia 2015: Stage 9 Results, Overall Standings and Highlights

Paolo Tiralongo finished solo during Sunday's Stage 9 of the 2015 Giro d'Italia, becoming the oldest rider to win an individual stage of Italy's legendary Grand Tour, as shared by Cyclingbase:

The Italian was part of an early break that was given a hefty lead by the peloton, and he had the freshest legs entering the final two climbs, blowing his fellow leaders out of the water.

In the background, Rigoberto Uran lost minutes on the other favourites for the general classification, and the Colombian's dreams of winning the maglia rosa may have already been shattered.

Here are the results from Stage 9:

Rider (Nationality) Team	Time
1 Paolo Tiralongo (Ita) Astana Pro Team	5:50:31
2 Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Team LottoNL-Jumbo	0:00:21
3 Simon Geschke (Ger) Team Giant-Alpecin	0:00:23
4 Amaël Moinard (Fra) BMC Racing Team	Same Time
5 Jesus Herrada (Spa) Movistar Team	Same Time
6 Carlos Betancur (Col) AG2R La Mondiale	Same Time
7 Tom Jelte Slagter (Ned) Cannondale-Garmin Pro Cycling Team	Same Time
8 Kenny Elissonde (Fra) FDJ.fr	Same Time
9 Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Cannondale-Garmin Pro Cycling Team	0:00:27
10 Fabio Aru (Ita) Astana Pro Team	0:00:56

Team Sky shared the profile for Sunday's stage, while noting a group of 11 riders took an early lead:

Twice the peloton was put under real pressure, and Alberto Contador had to work hard to bridge the gap the first time the pack fell into two pieces. Tinkoff-Saxo weren't fooled the second time and blocked the pace up front, allowing 11 riders to make their escape.

Most of the climbing took part in the middle section of the stage, and after Saturday's full day of climbing, the peloton kept the overall pace relatively low and was happy to grant the leaders the spotlight.

Tom-Jelte Slagter and Steven Kruijswijk made the best impression out of the leaders, but it was Tiralongo who managed to escape on the final climb and hold on for a fantastic win.

In the background, Astana and Fabio Aru once again attacked the rest of the favourites for the maglia rosa, but Contador and Richie Porte had no problems countering their moves. Uran couldn't keep up with the pace, however, per The Inner Ring:

Aru tried sprinting away from his main rivals in the final straight and opened up a minimal lead over Contador, but the Spaniard held on to the maglia rosa.

Here's how the general classification looks after Stage 9:

Rider (Nationality) Team	Time
1 Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo	38:31:35
2 Fabio Aru (Ita) Astana Pro Team	0:00:03
3 Richie Porte (Aus) Team Sky	0:00:22
4 Mikel Landa Meana (Spa) Astana Pro Team	0:00:46
5 Dario Cataldo (Ita) Astana Pro Team	0:01:16
6 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Tinkoff-Saxo	0:01:46
7 Giovanni Visconti (Ita) Movistar Team	0:02:02
8 Rigoberto Uran (Col) Etixx - Quick-Step	0:02:10
9 Damiano Caruso (Ita) BMC Racing Team	0:02:20
10 Andrey Amador (CRc) Movistar Team	0:02:24

There are few surprises in the top 10, but Uran is already trailing Contador by more than two minutes and is in dire need of a strong showing. The Colombian will be looking forward to Stage 14—the monstrous time trial that will shake up the classification—but his current form suggests he could be in trouble during the final week.

Contador has looked just fine despite injuring his shoulder during the week, but Stage 14 will be a big test in his bid for the Giro-Tour de France double. As team doctor Piet de Moor told Andrew Hood of VeloNews, it's unclear whether the Spaniard will be able to sit in his preferred time-trial position:

"

We haven’t thought about that yet. He has to get there first, and he has to try. Maybe he will make a test on the rest day. The time trial position, you know how narrow Alberto likes to be on the bike, that’s going to be another question. It depends how much moves the arm. If he leaves it without moving, it will become a ‘frozen shoulder,’ so he has to begin to move it as well, but not higher than 90 degrees. After the race, we will have to see … For the moment, he is OK. He is sleeping OK as well, which is also very important.

"

Aru has launched several attacks on Contador already and appears in good form, but so far, the Spaniard has comfortably handled everything his rival has thrown at him. The same goes for Porte, who has yet to show any real attacking intentions.

Conserving energy is key at this point of the Giro, and the peloton will be happy to learn that Monday will be a rest day.

With several more mountain finishes—as well as the time trial to Valdobbiadene—on the way, a swift recovery will be needed.

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