09/05/2014

:01:21. > :01:26.Belfast has been transformed into ACL glee and pink. Every statue,

:01:27. > :01:31.building, almost everyone, proudly showing the colours of the Giro

:01:32. > :01:35.D'Italia. We are bringing you live coverage of each of the three stages

:01:36. > :01:40.when the race is in Ireland. Here, on BBC Northern Ireland, starting

:01:41. > :01:46.with tonight's team time trial. Welcome to the centre of Belfast

:01:47. > :01:50.where in the shadow of the magnificent City Hall, we will bear

:01:51. > :01:59.witness of the finished the opening two stages. Alongside me, to share

:02:00. > :02:02.the colour and atmosphere, one of the greatest ever cyclists to come

:02:03. > :02:07.out of this part of the world, Michael Hutchinson. It is fitting

:02:08. > :02:15.that he is with us as he is a time trial specialist. The buzz has been

:02:16. > :02:24.extraordinary. So many people. Such atmosphere, such pleasure. You grew

:02:25. > :02:29.up on the streets, riding your bike. Did you ever believe that you would

:02:30. > :02:32.see something like this, grand tour coming to Belfast. What would it

:02:33. > :02:37.mean to Northern Ireland? It is extraordinary. It feels as if

:02:38. > :02:43.someone has delivered the world's second greatest cycle race to the

:02:44. > :02:46.wrong place. It feels like it does not belong here but it is so

:02:47. > :02:51.positive for cycling as a sport and a past time, as a hobby. It has got

:02:52. > :02:55.everyone so excited about it. Everyone is talking about bikes and

:02:56. > :03:00.riding bikes. A wonderful crowd on the streets already. Kevin Andrews

:03:01. > :03:04.is amongst them. We are on the finish line. The

:03:05. > :03:09.riders will come past us. Some fans have been waiting all day. The

:03:10. > :03:13.photographers are ready. Some of the riders are coming past. There is a

:03:14. > :03:16.great seat up there if you want it. Over the evening, we will hear from

:03:17. > :03:24.some of the riders and hopefully some local celebrities. The only bad

:03:25. > :03:30.thing is the weather. I think everybody in Belfast is aware of the

:03:31. > :03:33.scale of the event. Over the last few days, thousands of come into the

:03:34. > :03:39.city. We have had the teams and their entourage, hundreds of media

:03:40. > :03:43.covering this race. It will be broadcast to 175 countries around

:03:44. > :03:49.the world. For anybody unsure of the race's significance, you is an

:03:50. > :03:53.overview. -- here is. The Giro D'Italia is one

:03:54. > :03:59.of cycling's three grand tours. They each take three weeks and run over

:04:00. > :04:03.21 stages. There are 22 teams with nine riders in each team. The winner

:04:04. > :04:06.of the race is a writer with the lowest aggregate time for completing

:04:07. > :04:14.all stages. Throughout the race, the currently dirt where is the famous

:04:15. > :04:18.pink jersey, one of the most iconic emblems in world sport. The nine

:04:19. > :04:21.riders do different jobs. Each team will have a leader, the best

:04:22. > :04:26.all-round rider Michael will try to win the overall race. The others

:04:27. > :04:31.help the leader by carrying food and drink, shielding him from the wind,

:04:32. > :04:36.so that he can conserve energy. The overall race is won by someone who

:04:37. > :04:39.can do a bit of everything, covering breaks, time trialling, and riding

:04:40. > :04:43.in high mountains. But other specialists compete for stage wins,

:04:44. > :04:46.in high mountains. But other a stages element of every grand

:04:47. > :04:51.tour. Each stage is different. The latter stages are won by sprinters.

:04:52. > :04:55.Every team will have one of these, an expose of rider protected by his

:04:56. > :04:58.team-mates until a few hundred yards from the finish when he will be

:04:59. > :05:02.unleashed to sprint against the other fast men trying to win the

:05:03. > :05:08.stage. The sprinters compete for their own jersey, won by the rider

:05:09. > :05:15.who has picked up the most sprint points. The best mountain climber

:05:16. > :05:17.also has a jersey, a blue jersey, to fight for.

:05:18. > :05:22.also has a jersey, a blue jersey, to fight Electively, the 198 riders are

:05:23. > :05:26.known as the peloton and they are bunched together on the road. Expect

:05:27. > :05:30.to see the race favourites tucked away in there safely for most of the

:05:31. > :05:37.stages. On each stage, a small group of riders will race away early from

:05:38. > :05:41.the peloton, forming a breakaway. They will try to stay clear for the

:05:42. > :05:44.race but the collective strength will usually catch them before the

:05:45. > :05:52.end. Since the race was conceived in 1909 as a means of promoting

:05:53. > :05:56.Italy's famous pink sports newspaper, it has become a true icon

:05:57. > :06:00.of world sport. It attracts the very best cyclists in the world and a

:06:01. > :06:04.global television audience of around 690 and people. Each year, the race

:06:05. > :06:08.covers a different route and every other year, it starts outside of

:06:09. > :06:13.Italy. This is the first time it has ever started outside continental

:06:14. > :06:22.Europe. That is the trophy the winner will

:06:23. > :06:29.left on the 1st of June after 3500 kilometres of racing. Vincenzo

:06:30. > :06:34.Nobilo lifted at last year but he is not here this year. We have a

:06:35. > :06:40.stellar cast list, though. Unfortunately, we do not have

:06:41. > :06:44.Vincenzo Nibali, but we have horrific riders. We have three Irish

:06:45. > :06:49.riders who got a fantastic reception for the team presentation last

:06:50. > :06:54.night. Ben Swift is the only British rider. We have a lot of terrific

:06:55. > :07:03.talent here. Some of the best names in cycling. And the favourite, Nairo

:07:04. > :07:08.Quintana, the Colombian, such a star last year. He was a real revelation

:07:09. > :07:11.of the Tour de France last year. He took the most of his chance. He

:07:12. > :07:17.wrote aggressively, even for a Colombian. Time trialling is not

:07:18. > :07:23.usually good for Colombians but he is really a hot favourite. And such

:07:24. > :07:27.a popular character. Very much so. He is a smart, interesting guy. I

:07:28. > :07:33.think he is pretty popular. What about the big Spanish challenge?

:07:34. > :07:38.Joaquim Rodriguez. 35 on Monday. Ten years older than Ken Tanner, but

:07:39. > :07:42.certainly he will fancy his chances. He was third last year, so here's

:07:43. > :07:49.part of that quality of riders that are here. But last year, he was very

:07:50. > :07:52.much a following rider. He was not aggressive and he did not attack. If

:07:53. > :07:56.he wants to take this, he will have to take the race by the scruff of

:07:57. > :08:01.its neck. We do not have a Chris Froome, last year's Tour de France

:08:02. > :08:08.winner, he is building up to the tour and choosing not to write.

:08:09. > :08:11.Bradley Wiggins is in California, and Mark Cavendish is not here

:08:12. > :08:16.either, he is in California. But one of the big names we have, Cadel

:08:17. > :08:22.Evans of Australia, writing for PMC. He is a popular writer. He won

:08:23. > :08:25.the tour in 2011 but he is 37 now, even older than Rodriguez. But he

:08:26. > :08:31.has been extraordinarily well this spring. He is in good form. I think

:08:32. > :08:34.he is someone you would not want to overlook at the age of 37. He

:08:35. > :08:51.probably has the strongest team in the race behind him. And some things

:08:52. > :08:54.improve with age. Absolutely. We say that you cannot win the Giro

:08:55. > :08:58.D'Italia in the opening days, but you do not want to lose it here.

:08:59. > :09:04.Before the race is finished, maybe one of the GC contenders will have a

:09:05. > :09:07.bad time. Obviously, the streets are slippery and it is not impossible

:09:08. > :09:12.that you could get a crash around the corner. You could have a -- it

:09:13. > :09:16.could have an influence on the outcome. You mentioned the Irish

:09:17. > :09:21.riders taking part. Who has the best chance, do you think, in the general

:09:22. > :09:28.race? It would began Martin. At the minute. -- B Dan Martin. The team

:09:29. > :09:33.and not decided on a single leader yet. Dan would be one of the guys in

:09:34. > :09:37.that team who might be able to take on the leaders role. If he does, he

:09:38. > :09:42.would have a good chance of an overall result. Let's skip to the

:09:43. > :09:49.first stage of the Giro D'Italia. 22 teams in the race, each racing

:09:50. > :09:55.against the clock. They go off at five minute intervals around the

:09:56. > :09:57.course of 27, trips. Time trialling is a specialist discipline. And

:09:58. > :10:12.Michael is one of the best in the business.

:10:13. > :10:18.It is the simplest by grace. One rider, one machine, against the

:10:19. > :10:26.clock. It has been called the race of truth for 100 years, because that

:10:27. > :10:33.is what it is. -- bike race. In 18 time trial, each team races

:10:34. > :10:37.alongside. The riders take turns in setting the pace. The time is taken

:10:38. > :10:44.from the fifth rider across the line.

:10:45. > :10:54.The art of time trialling is feeling the edge of what you can do and what

:10:55. > :10:59.you cannot. You have to learn to do that. It is about riders who can

:11:00. > :11:06.produce a high level of output for a long time. They can settle down to a

:11:07. > :11:11.strong rhythm and write fast. The position is different. The bike is

:11:12. > :11:21.lower, more compact. You are not as agile. It is for going very fast, in

:11:22. > :11:26.straight lines. It is about getting low and narrow. You will see time

:11:27. > :11:38.trialists would narrow shoulders and low heads, captain as compact as

:11:39. > :11:44.they can get. It is the simplest possible by grace with the least

:11:45. > :11:48.amount of technology. You were a skin suit for time trialling, which

:11:49. > :11:52.will probably save you a couple of seconds a mile. If you were an

:11:53. > :11:56.aerodynamic helmet, it will save you as much as a second. You will wear

:11:57. > :12:01.rubber shoes over normal cycling shoes, which will save you another

:12:02. > :12:08.second. It all adds up. It is for geeks with heart. If you watch a guy

:12:09. > :12:13.coming in on the final corner, he knows his numbers to four decimal

:12:14. > :12:20.places. But he is having to dig deep. And that is the joy of a time

:12:21. > :12:23.trial. You get a lot for your money if you were at the side of the road

:12:24. > :12:30.watching the time trial. Of course, you are seeing a team come through

:12:31. > :12:33.every five minutes. But it is a very specialised discipline. And you can

:12:34. > :12:38.tell, even to the uneducated eye, if a team is going well, and when

:12:39. > :12:40.things are not going well, because it is like watching a team shoot in

:12:41. > :12:46.the velodrome. If they are in formation, you can tell that they

:12:47. > :12:49.are getting the most out of it. You can see from the tight formations,

:12:50. > :12:53.who is getting it right and wrong. And it is critical. Because you are

:12:54. > :12:59.right on the edge. But because you are riding with others, if you push

:13:00. > :13:04.to deep, you can not slow down. Some of the riders here will be writing

:13:05. > :13:09.for the first time at a big event because it is not that common a

:13:10. > :13:14.discipline. It is specialised. And we have seen the teams out earlier

:13:15. > :13:21.today when the roads were closed, practising formation. But as you

:13:22. > :13:25.say, many of these riders, certainly those in their first tour, at

:13:26. > :13:32.perhaps not written in these trials before. -- have perhaps not written.

:13:33. > :13:39.They are relatively inexperienced, some of the teams. For them, it is a

:13:40. > :13:43.learning experience to come and ride around a city circuit, which is

:13:44. > :13:53.always a little bit technical. And possibly for one of the first time

:13:54. > :13:57.trials of their career. Talking of inexperience, the team from Colombia

:13:58. > :14:01.were making history to date, rolling down the start ramp in the Titanic

:14:02. > :14:07.Quarter. This is the nine riders. The first time that the Giro

:14:08. > :14:14.D'Italia has taken place outside of continental Europe. Magnificent

:14:15. > :14:17.scenes there. Huge crowds. We have teams that riding these tours, but

:14:18. > :14:25.this is a national team from Colombia, to bring on young riders.

:14:26. > :14:32.What a reception for them. A fantastic reception. Connolly are a

:14:33. > :14:35.well represented nation. It is great that they are using an event like

:14:36. > :14:40.this to bring on younger riders. Very positive for global cycling.

:14:41. > :14:47.And Kim Tanner, leading from the front, inspired by him we have many

:14:48. > :14:56.other riders. Some of them have a great chance. Tashkent Hannah. He

:14:57. > :15:01.deftly has a chance at this race. -- he definitely. Huge effort goes in

:15:02. > :15:07.to putting the bikes on the road. A huge effort went into securing this

:15:08. > :15:10.great race. We have been taking a look behind the scenes and some of

:15:11. > :15:17.the elements that go into racing and some of the hardest working members

:15:18. > :15:21.in the backstage of Team Sky. This is Gary, the chief mechanic. Is this

:15:22. > :15:25.where the hard work is done? This is where we keep the equipment and bike

:15:26. > :15:28.checks are done inside here in the comfort of our truck. We have good

:15:29. > :15:34.lighting here so we can work late at night. Currently I am working on Ben

:15:35. > :15:38.Swift's time trial bike and double checking the measurements. This is

:15:39. > :15:43.his spare time trial bike. We have measurements of the race TT and now

:15:44. > :15:46.we are duplicating with this device here. The drawer are full of

:15:47. > :15:52.equipment. We are stay on the road for over a month. Four mechanics on

:15:53. > :15:55.a Grand Tour and then we have 27 race bikes that need to be checked

:15:56. > :16:00.on a daily basis and washed every day. And each rider has two time

:16:01. > :16:09.trial bikes. It's additional 18 bikes there. During a day we start

:16:10. > :16:13.about 6. 30am and end between 11.00 and 12 at night for three weeks. You

:16:14. > :16:18.do have rest days but there's no rest days for the mechanics. Then we

:16:19. > :16:23.have a chance to really check all the equipment properly. And change

:16:24. > :16:27.the tyres and so forth. Do the riders like to tinker with the bikes

:16:28. > :16:32.or do they put their trust in you? They put their trust in us. Some are

:16:33. > :16:39.more precise than others. You have a rider, let's say Ben Swift, that is

:16:40. > :16:45.very particular about the sad saddle height. For instance, 77. 2.

:16:46. > :16:50.Yesterday's bike was 77. 3 and he came back and said it feels too

:16:51. > :16:56.high. Riders will feel the last millimetre. It's important that we

:16:57. > :17:00.are precise. Therefore, we have a measuring to duplicate the bikes as

:17:01. > :17:05.accurate as possible. The technology, there is electronics in

:17:06. > :17:09.this? Battery here on the frame. You have cables running through. They

:17:10. > :17:15.can shift on the extensions. They can shift on the handlebars.

:17:16. > :17:23.Everything is fully electronic. The gears, two buttons here. This will

:17:24. > :17:31.work the rear, in a time trial in position you will stay and only need

:17:32. > :17:36.to change gears in the rear. The aim is to hide all the cables for

:17:37. > :17:42.aerodynamic purposes. We are passionate about it and we all

:17:43. > :17:47.strive to achieve the best we can. Everybody puts in 100%. The riders

:17:48. > :17:53.do, the staff do. Unlike the riders you can have a pint in the evening.

:17:54. > :17:58.Yes, not every day, but yes. It's not good for us, we are not

:17:59. > :18:01.exercising, so can't drink too much. I love hearing about the attention

:18:02. > :18:09.to detail and Ben Swift being able to sense a millimetre of difference

:18:10. > :18:13.in the saddle. Is your chair the right height tonight? It's finely

:18:14. > :18:17.tuned. It would slow him down. They have to get these things right. A

:18:18. > :18:23.team like Sky goes through everything. Even to the extent they

:18:24. > :18:28.take riders pillows to the hotels so they have their own personal pillow.

:18:29. > :18:33.Everything is looked at. Don't you always take your own pillow?

:18:34. > :18:38.Absolutely, yes. Let's look at some of the riders and teams back. The

:18:39. > :18:45.race started earlier today. We saw Colombia. Orica Greenedge are very

:18:46. > :18:51.much one of the favourites, mainly made up of Australians, there is an

:18:52. > :18:55.Italian in that team. But a strong team time trial.

:18:56. > :19:15.This is them coming home in a time of 24. 42. Tremendous.

:19:16. > :19:20.Let's look at Katusha. A little disappointing. Their time was behind

:19:21. > :19:24.obviously, 26. 15. A slow time. I wonder if that's because the

:19:25. > :19:29.conditions were deteriorating? Yeah, conditions have got worse. Orica got

:19:30. > :19:44.around most of the course on the dry and around the technical sections at

:19:45. > :19:53.the beginning in the dry. Strong ride there. Let's get to the live

:19:54. > :19:59.action now to see what's happening out on the road. We can join our

:20:00. > :20:20.commentary team Dan loid and Carlton Kirby. -- Lloyd.

:20:21. > :20:28.OK, this looks like Trek coming through. There is Team Sky on the

:20:29. > :20:30.course now, looking professional indeed. There is the standings at

:20:31. > :20:47.the moment. This is Team Sky. Looking very well.

:20:48. > :20:52.In formation and they are out on the course. Looks like a bit of dry road

:20:53. > :20:56.at this stage. It's clearly dry at the minute where they are. Team Sky

:20:57. > :20:58.will take this seriously. They probably on this occasion don't have

:20:59. > :21:04.the strongest possible team. They've a lot of climbers in the team for

:21:05. > :21:11.the end of the Tour. That's Christopher Sutton at the back. He

:21:12. > :21:16.was drafted in to this team after Pete Kennaugh had to drop out. They

:21:17. > :21:23.lost Ritchie Port who was going to be their overall contender and a

:21:24. > :21:27.week after they lost Peter Kennaugh. They brought Chris in. They're on

:21:28. > :21:34.the hunt for stage wins. They don't really have an overall prospect.

:21:35. > :21:40.We should mention Philip Deignan, the Irishman, an Ulsterman but

:21:41. > :21:44.brought up in Letterkenny, I understand. He is 30 years old. He

:21:45. > :21:49.has been around a few years. He has ridden in big races before. He will

:21:50. > :21:55.be relishing this opportunity. It's marvellous to do this kind of event

:21:56. > :21:59.in what is your home country. A lot of riders from Ireland never get a

:22:00. > :22:02.chance to ride something like this here. He will be hoping to show well

:22:03. > :22:13.on the Irish stages. here. He will be hoping to show well

:22:14. > :22:18.We saw the mechanics with the guys looking at the bikes before the race

:22:19. > :22:23.in the build-up to this. Gavin was allowed in to see some of that

:22:24. > :22:26.cutting edge technology and you yourself said looking at team time

:22:27. > :22:29.trialing you are looking for minute differences that can make all the

:22:30. > :22:36.difference when it comes to getting the best time on the road. Time

:22:37. > :22:39.trialing is a very critical discipline and team trialing even

:22:40. > :22:45.more so. They're looking for every margin they can get. And trying to

:22:46. > :22:55.keep it a tight formation heading into Stormont. Tease them taking the

:22:56. > :23:00.drag up to Stormont. Philip Deignan there. This drag up to Stormont, the

:23:01. > :23:04.driveway there, this is a very flat profile, the route, the 21. 7

:23:05. > :23:07.kilometres up to that iconic building. It's a slow drag up. If

:23:08. > :23:12.there is a climb on this time trial course it's there. Well, it's not

:23:13. > :23:15.that slow. It's reasonably steep but it's short. It's the kind of thing

:23:16. > :23:19.that isn't going to trouble these riders. Possibly if the climb had

:23:20. > :23:22.been nearer the end of the course maybe it would have caused more

:23:23. > :23:26.trouble but it's not going to be an enormous problem for them. But it is

:23:27. > :23:29.a reasonable climb. Look at these crowds there. They've been building

:23:30. > :23:33.all day. Thousands of people have been coming in and getting their

:23:34. > :23:36.places. There is one of these wonderful characters running

:23:37. > :23:40.alongside the bikes as we have grown to love on these Grand Tours.

:23:41. > :23:44.Thousands are going to be making their way there all day. Earlier

:23:45. > :23:45.today our reporter Gavin was up there trying to get a sense of the

:23:46. > :23:54.occasion. As you can see it's bouncing in the

:23:55. > :23:59.grounds of Stormont, these kids aren't going to be annoying in a

:24:00. > :24:03.couple of hours! Lovely. You are in charge of this madness. What's going

:24:04. > :24:10.on this evening? Well, obviously we are here to support the Giro. The

:24:11. > :24:14.cycling club will have hundreds of friends and supporters and club

:24:15. > :24:19.members to celebrate the Giro. Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for

:24:20. > :24:25.us. Our club colours have always been pink when the club was formed.

:24:26. > :24:29.This is in honour of the race coming here, it's a fantastic day for the

:24:30. > :24:36.club and country. Talk us through the outfit. Pink shoes, socks,

:24:37. > :24:41.trousers, T-shirt, wig, do I need to go on? No thanks. You have left

:24:42. > :24:47.yourself-respect at the door this morning. -- yourself-respect at the

:24:48. > :24:49.door this morning. I am worried about my hair. We will get that

:24:50. > :25:07.straightened. That's Belkin, just finished in 5th

:25:08. > :25:10.place. That's the team from the Netherlands. They've had mixed

:25:11. > :25:15.conditions on the roads. Dry at times, but that wind and the rain

:25:16. > :25:17.just breaking in to the course. The weather certainly playing a role

:25:18. > :25:20.this evening. It's a lot of wind on the course. It's going to disrupt

:25:21. > :25:26.things particularly on the more exposed sections near the start.

:25:27. > :25:33.It's wet roads towards the end of the course. Sky - one of the Sky

:25:34. > :25:40.riders off the back of the string. That looks like Chris Sutton off the

:25:41. > :25:43.back of Team Sky. I think he's probably been overextended, probably

:25:44. > :25:46.pushed too hard. They're getting to the second half of the ride. They

:25:47. > :25:53.will start to shed one or two riders. The time is taken on the 5th

:25:54. > :25:57.rider home. You might as well use them and drop them, no point in

:25:58. > :26:03.bringing all nine riders home if you don't need them. It's the first five

:26:04. > :26:08.riders, five in the team, that's the time given to the team? The team's

:26:09. > :26:11.time is taken on the 5th rider. Any riders who don't make it home in

:26:12. > :26:14.that five will get the time they got on their own. If you are dropped by

:26:15. > :26:18.the team you can lose time overall on the team time trial. It's why the

:26:19. > :26:23.top teams will be careful to make sure they get all of their

:26:24. > :26:31.contenders home. For instance, Katusha will be making sure

:26:32. > :26:35.Rodriguez gets home. This is one of the five Italian

:26:36. > :26:39.teams in the race. They'll be well supported when they hit continental

:26:40. > :26:45.Europe. For the Italian teams it's the biggest race of the year. In

:26:46. > :26:49.Italy, try telling anyone this is the second biggest race in the

:26:50. > :26:54.world. For the Italians this is the biggest event of their year. It's

:26:55. > :26:57.important for them to perform at the top level in their home tour. A lot

:26:58. > :27:01.of communication between the riders out on the road. They're also

:27:02. > :27:05.communicating with the team cars following them who support them.

:27:06. > :27:09.Clearly an issue there. Communication in a team time trial

:27:10. > :27:14.is critical. If you are struggling you do have to explain you are

:27:15. > :27:20.struggling. Clearly this is one of the important riders who has been

:27:21. > :27:27.dropped and they're wait waiting for him. That's why they've the five

:27:28. > :27:30.riders to get home and you need all your stars in those five. If

:27:31. > :27:33.somebody gets dropped and there is a lack of communication you end up

:27:34. > :27:46.with a problem because someone is off the back and somebody at the

:27:47. > :27:50.front doesn't know. It will be Europcar next, I think. One of the

:27:51. > :27:55.French teams. We are back on Team Sky. A team who have enjoyed

:27:56. > :28:01.phenomenal success in the short time of their existence. Yeah, they are

:28:02. > :28:05.sort of the commercial art reach of the GB track programme. They've

:28:06. > :28:10.brought attention to detail that they had across to men's

:28:11. > :28:18.professional road racing. And they've done extraordinarily well.

:28:19. > :28:21.Only a few seasons' old now. They've done strongly, performed strongly in

:28:22. > :28:26.nearly all the Grand Tours they've done. Their rate of progress has

:28:27. > :28:35.been nothing sort of -- short of phenomenal. A well-drilled team, as

:28:36. > :28:41.well. You see them. This is Cannondale up towards Stormont.

:28:42. > :28:45.They're out of the saddle pushing hard. They're attacking this. They

:28:46. > :28:54.have to be careful not to drop is somebody off the back. You could put

:28:55. > :28:57.distance, if one of their star riders drops off the back it can

:28:58. > :29:02.create a problem. Once you are out of the string it's almost impossible

:29:03. > :29:21.to get back in because it will be one of you against eight of them.

:29:22. > :29:26.Here they are, they're off the ramp right now. Let's hope they go

:29:27. > :29:35.safely. Also a handy squad.

:29:36. > :29:43.Appollonio is their spinter. -- sprinter.

:29:44. > :29:51.If they go well and it's drying off now favouring these late running

:29:52. > :30:06.teams they can go well. This is a team who should go well and haven't,

:30:07. > :30:12.Europcar. In the first time check. -- they were way down at the first

:30:13. > :30:18.time check. They're not going to be setting the race alike. In fact, I'm

:30:19. > :30:29.not sure what they will be lighting today. It is not grateful at all for

:30:30. > :30:35.peer Holland. As far as the title is concerned, he may as well be

:30:36. > :30:38.standing there waving it goodbye. As the crowd screamed them on, a

:30:39. > :30:48.terrific atmosphere in Belfast. Not a terrific performance by team

:30:49. > :31:00.Europe car. 10th of ten. That is a lot of time

:31:01. > :31:07.to lose, two minutes. You can see all the disarray among this French

:31:08. > :31:16.team. And nobody wanted to talk after the line. Eyes down. They know

:31:17. > :31:21.that that was bad. It cannot get much worse, they are last at the

:31:22. > :31:30.moment. Colombia will be doing a rain dance next time. Right now,

:31:31. > :31:38.Orica-GreenEdge is about everybody. And Tinkoff-Saxo, and Nicole

:31:39. > :31:46.Roesch, that is fantastic. -- eggless Roesch. A big difference

:31:47. > :31:50.between Tinkoff-Saxo and Movistar. You would expect Movistar to have

:31:51. > :31:55.dominated. I think we have already seen it several times. Tinkoff-Saxo

:31:56. > :32:02.have benefited from the dry conditions. Cannondale having

:32:03. > :32:07.another nightmare time. They came through the time check 47 seconds

:32:08. > :32:11.down. There was only one team worse than that, and we saw them a moment

:32:12. > :32:20.ago. That is the same corner. A dicey moment. They could probably do

:32:21. > :32:24.with amending that. I've already mentioned that they have looked at

:32:25. > :32:28.the course multiple times but it is always different when you come in to

:32:29. > :32:33.race. The conditions, not only, but when you are at race pace, and the

:32:34. > :32:38.skin suits are on, and the adrenaline is going, you come into

:32:39. > :32:42.everything quicker than when you are training. It can take you by

:32:43. > :32:57.surprise, especially if the road is wet. Team Sky, taking one of the

:32:58. > :33:06.turns to the end... This is the first of the jurors in Belfast. --

:33:07. > :33:10.tours. Sky approaching the end of their run. Doing a good job between

:33:11. > :33:19.the first and second test. Ninth place at the moment. Six seconds

:33:20. > :33:23.down on the leaders. That is the negative split that we were talking

:33:24. > :33:30.about. Giant Shimano will be all about power. Their leader is a big

:33:31. > :33:37.unit. He is also desperately good-looking. But not a great time.

:33:38. > :33:43.I've thought you were going to say that I could not say that! The man

:33:44. > :33:49.is a God. And his fan base is huge. But as you shall say, this is not

:33:50. > :33:52.brilliant. We thought the power would deliver but we think the

:33:53. > :33:59.Skrtel resurface, still wet but drying, has found them out. Marcel

:34:00. > :34:06.will not be bothered. Simon may be going for a half decent time trial.

:34:07. > :34:12.But he cannot do it for everyone. Five second is the deficit for Giant

:34:13. > :34:19.Shimano. Another team not going to threaten the leaders. One of my

:34:20. > :34:27.favourite teams, from Venezuela. Why is it my favourite? Courtesy of

:34:28. > :34:31.Gianni Savio. Because the Prince. -- they call him the Prince. It is hard

:34:32. > :34:37.to say what he looks like until you see him. Imagine a 60s game show

:34:38. > :34:42.host and you have kind of got it. He is a hell of a character. He has

:34:43. > :34:48.signed up some great riders. You might say somewhat questionable but

:34:49. > :35:01.that may be unfair. Johnny hooter land on board, who you may remember

:35:02. > :35:08.nudging into the riders upfront. He is out there, on the course. Plenty

:35:09. > :35:14.of stitches. Lampre-Merida do not look like they have taken too much.

:35:15. > :35:25.26. And they are looking at each other. At least they have broken 50,

:35:26. > :35:30.but 20 down. And that goes to show how bad the conditions are.

:35:31. > :35:33.Lampre-Merida, despite their troubles and waiting for their

:35:34. > :35:42.leader, based ill beat the Russian team by 13 seconds. A really poor

:35:43. > :35:48.start for Rodriguez. I wonder what the issue was today. We will find

:35:49. > :35:53.out. I was about to speculate whether even tyre pressure would

:35:54. > :35:57.have been an issue. I'm not looking to blame anyone but they have had a

:35:58. > :36:01.lousy run. Orica-GreenEdge, on the other hand, brilliant. But they were

:36:02. > :36:06.blessed with an early run on changeable conditions. The road is

:36:07. > :36:15.still damp and giant Shimano do not look too happy. And just look at

:36:16. > :36:19.their protected rider's size. He is a powerhouse when it comes to

:36:20. > :36:28.sprinting and he is the man to beat at the moment. He is head and

:36:29. > :36:35.shoulders of many of the sprinters in the world. He has had the better

:36:36. > :36:47.of Mark Cavendish this year twice. He could become part of a select

:36:48. > :36:53.group of riders, kettle. -- Kittel. He is a tall man. Probably about six

:36:54. > :37:04.foot four. Him and Taylor Finney standing next to one another, they

:37:05. > :37:11.are in the clouds. Ag2r are on the up into their run, approaching the

:37:12. > :37:19.eight minute mark. Their number 11 man, he has some good grounds to

:37:20. > :37:24.credentials. I expect he might well do very well here. But it comes down

:37:25. > :37:29.to this as well. If you were going to get yourself into a position of

:37:30. > :37:35.advantage, why not grab it is today? We have a great course here, and

:37:36. > :37:47.Sky, for example, have had some very dry sections. This could play into

:37:48. > :38:00.the hands of teens like BMC Racing. It will be about 12 minutes before

:38:01. > :38:06.they hit our screens. You know what we were saying about management,

:38:07. > :38:10.Team Sky are such good leaders. They knew what they had to do today. And

:38:11. > :38:17.that was produce a smooth and efficient performance. It looks like

:38:18. > :38:22.the more ragged, to say the least, with team Cannondale. They do not

:38:23. > :38:30.look like they are 18. It is a section of individuals. -- they are

:38:31. > :38:45.a team. Like Team Sky, they have not done too badly between the first and

:38:46. > :38:52.second checks. They were way down. About 17 seconds down, on Team Sky,

:38:53. > :38:59.who we see approaching the finish. The Norwegian rider, leading the

:39:00. > :39:02.Team end. Last year, his contract was spoken about ending, so he will

:39:03. > :39:11.look to do very well over the next few weeks. This is a very good time.

:39:12. > :39:14.Team Sky had some rain. But Tinkoff-Saxo are their target. I do

:39:15. > :39:23.not think they will get quite there but they have done a superb run.

:39:24. > :39:27.They started off in the rain, and Dorothy Greenidge were blessed with

:39:28. > :39:31.better conditions. It is drying up now and we will start to see better

:39:32. > :39:40.runs. They are going to beat Movistar's time. 51.4 kilometres per

:39:41. > :39:44.hour. They were not the quickest in the first part of because. We were

:39:45. > :39:50.talking about negative splits. That was perfectly executed. I think the

:39:51. > :39:57.put together an impressive ride. They started with wet roads. To only

:39:58. > :40:07.concede 30 seconds, I think that is a job well done for the British

:40:08. > :40:16.want. Only 12 seconds behind Saxone. -- Tindell Saxone.

:40:17. > :40:23.That puts Team Sky in third place, possibly with the worst of the

:40:24. > :40:29.conditions of the main contenders. That is an impressive ride. Slippery

:40:30. > :40:34.roads, and not a Team that is really set up with a view to the time

:40:35. > :40:37.trial. If you look at the other teams, some of them have been

:40:38. > :40:42.targeting this event from the beginning, so they have a group of

:40:43. > :40:46.climbers. And Team Sky, have done a good Team trial, but that is

:40:47. > :40:51.something they have clearly taken seriously. They have done the best

:40:52. > :40:54.they can. Tomorrow, it will be interesting to see who will be

:40:55. > :41:00.wearing the pink jersey when they take on the second stage. At the

:41:01. > :41:06.moment, it looks like the Orica-GreenEdge Team contained the

:41:07. > :41:16.likely candidate. They have been preparing for this for some time.

:41:17. > :41:28.Ballamoney is home to the biggest fan of two. We have prepared a Tiger

:41:29. > :41:35.alley, where we are commemorating the greatest cyclists. We're doing a

:41:36. > :41:41.family fun day. We will have a raw deal boule, a bouncy castle, tents,

:41:42. > :41:45.this will be the place to be. You are really up for this! I am in. I

:41:46. > :42:05.am so excited! As a real enthusiast, what does this

:42:06. > :42:10.mean to you? I'm over 50 and have dreamt all my life of seeing this.

:42:11. > :42:16.To have it on my doorstep in Ballamoney, it is awesome.

:42:17. > :42:41.Meanwhile, at the castle, The MacDonald clan are welcoming the

:42:42. > :42:45.Giro D'Italia to the Causeway Coast. We will grant them safe passage. We

:42:46. > :42:50.have set up five horse riding events at Ballamoney because it is part of

:42:51. > :42:56.the territory. The theme is that all of the horse riders are escorting

:42:57. > :43:03.the Giro D'Italia cyclists passed each of the castles and monuments.

:43:04. > :43:10.As for the pink horrors... Will it not distract the cyclists? Good

:43:11. > :43:21.question, good question. But pretty girls always the -- attracted the

:43:22. > :43:27.fellas. It is great writing it pink horse. Why have to be fast enough to

:43:28. > :43:34.beat the cyclists. I will try. -- I have to be.

:43:35. > :43:39.So there will be ponies and parties right around the north coast but

:43:40. > :43:45.this could be the place to be to watch the racing on Saturday. The

:43:46. > :43:50.hills on the route, and as you can see, it might slow the riders down.

:43:51. > :44:01.But do you know what we could do without? This.

:44:02. > :44:07.The one thing you can't control is the weather. The Giro d'Italia is no

:44:08. > :44:11.stranger to bad weather. Last year the riders faced horrific

:44:12. > :44:13.conditions. It was Armageddon last year, much worse than anything

:44:14. > :44:17.they're going to see in Northern Ireland. It's amused me this year,

:44:18. > :44:21.all the riders and team directors talking about the weather in

:44:22. > :44:26.Northern Ireland, the weather and the rain. Whatever they get, last

:44:27. > :44:29.year in Italy was far worse T rained for almost the entire tour last

:44:30. > :44:31.year. Exactly. I think there was snow on occasions and all sorts.

:44:32. > :44:40.There we go. Here is Cannondale coming in now, we

:44:41. > :44:45.will go back to our commentators. It's a very good time. They may not

:44:46. > :44:48.have the smoothest style but it pays. Look at this. They're going to

:44:49. > :44:53.beat Movistar who started today as one of the favourites. It proves

:44:54. > :44:57.that drying conditions, we are seeing faster times, we are back up

:44:58. > :45:01.there. They did well. Over 20 seconds behind Movistar at the first

:45:02. > :45:06.time check after eight kilometres. They've had a great second part of

:45:07. > :45:09.this race. But as we have already been saying things are starting to

:45:10. > :45:14.dry over the last few corners so that will make a difference. BMC

:45:15. > :45:17.will be overjoyed if it continues to stay dry and the sun might even come

:45:18. > :45:26.out, because that will really help them. Five minutes before BMC leave.

:45:27. > :45:40.It's going to be Aussie joy today, you just feel it. Cadel Evans may

:45:41. > :45:45.well push them very close here. Orica had part of their run in the

:45:46. > :45:48.wet. It's now almost entirely dry. So yeah, it might be scary

:45:49. > :45:56.performance a little bit later on. We shall see. It's going to be

:45:57. > :46:05.fascinating, that's for sure. Team Giant Shimano and Garmin Sharp. Will

:46:06. > :46:09.there be joy for Dan Martin today? Well, I think he will be happy to

:46:10. > :46:15.limit his losses, quite hard to get out of Dan Martin whether he is

:46:16. > :46:24.focussing more on the GC or looking to stage wins. A few can go into

:46:25. > :46:28.that group of riders who have won a stage in all three of the Grand

:46:29. > :46:32.Tours. Never finished inside the top ten overall before, but perhaps this

:46:33. > :46:37.year with the extra motivation of the race starting in Ireland he may

:46:38. > :46:42.be able to do that. Let's hope so. Thank you for those of you who have

:46:43. > :46:46.written in on Twitter, there is a load of you. We will spare you some

:46:47. > :46:55.of our thoughts, or take some of your questions in a moment. Check

:46:56. > :47:09.this out, it's the same corner. He did a good job of getting to safety.

:47:10. > :47:16.His calf muscles are exceptional. Marcel is a big unit. A big bloke. A

:47:17. > :47:20.lot of these cyclists, you look on the television screens and I

:47:21. > :47:23.remember when I first started racing against professionals, more often

:47:24. > :47:28.than not they look smaller in real life than when I was watching on TV,

:47:29. > :47:35.actually Marcel is big in stature in all ways but doesn't seem to hold

:47:36. > :47:46.him back. Bonnie has written in, she describes Marcel as swoon-worthy.

:47:47. > :47:55.Calm down! You will see his magnificent hairdo later when he

:47:56. > :47:58.takes his helmet off. This may change, because conditions are

:47:59. > :48:04.drying. I am looking at the screen now and as they head towards

:48:05. > :48:09.Stormont, Garmin Sharp at the moment, are they experiencing

:48:10. > :48:13.wetness as well? It's party time here in Belfast. If you are

:48:14. > :48:18.wondering why this Ireland is so green, it's because it gets plenty

:48:19. > :48:22.of water. We had some earlier on today. Unfortunately, for some of

:48:23. > :48:30.the teams it hampered them. Big losers so far is Team Katusha and it

:48:31. > :48:34.was a shame for them. Some early guys went off in dry conditions and

:48:35. > :48:41.then it rained. Right now the course is drying. It's paying great favour

:48:42. > :48:48.towards those who are on the end of the timetable today. Last team to go

:48:49. > :48:56.will be Neri Sottoli. BMC we are waiting for. Orica Greenedge are the

:48:57. > :49:03.benchmark setters so far. Some teams have gone very well, including Team

:49:04. > :49:10.Sky in a partially wet run and Cannondale. This is BMC. This is the

:49:11. > :49:14.team of Cadel Evans. He is, of course, a Grand Tour winner and he

:49:15. > :49:22.is here to do some serious damage to everybody else. I reckon this team

:49:23. > :49:27.of which is a good time trialing team, could actually have a party. I

:49:28. > :49:40.think they're going to put in a good time in this trial today. Giant

:49:41. > :49:47.Shimano coming in to the finish. It's the 5th rider across the line

:49:48. > :49:55.who will stop the clock. Not a bad time. 5th place looks... Just lost a

:49:56. > :50:02.couple of places there over the lost 100 metres. Going back to BMC, I

:50:03. > :50:13.think they'll be very happy that things have started to dry up. They

:50:14. > :50:20.took the team time trial victory at another event. That's a team full of

:50:21. > :50:25.confidence. Brent, one of two Americans within this team, but this

:50:26. > :50:30.morning took a tumble whilst practising the course, not actually

:50:31. > :50:46.on the course. They headed back to the start and he hit one of these

:50:47. > :50:55.bollards. Luckily unhurt. Talking about Americans, John Bolton

:50:56. > :51:01.has written in, have a great Giro, guys. Thank you, John. Good that we

:51:02. > :51:07.are, if you are listening to us, you are joining a world party, I might

:51:08. > :51:11.add. We are down under, as well. We are across in the United States. We

:51:12. > :51:18.are in South Africa. We are around the Pacific rim and of course we are

:51:19. > :51:21.in Northern Ireland. And Belfast, it may be damp and chilly, but the

:51:22. > :51:27.warmest of welcomes. I can't remember a day that's been just so

:51:28. > :51:31.well-celebrated. It's always great when the Giro for any Grand Tour

:51:32. > :51:37.starts outside the country. So many people waiting for it for so long.

:51:38. > :51:50.It's great when it arrives and you fans enjoying things.

:51:51. > :51:59.Staying with Bardiani in a team time trial when the 5th rider crosses

:52:00. > :52:02.does the team get the same time? No, only those riders ahead of him and

:52:03. > :52:06.the 5th man, if they're in the same bunch they all get the 5th man time.

:52:07. > :52:11.If there is any gap, in other words, if you are dropped rider, you get

:52:12. > :52:15.your individual time. However, if there are gaps, let's say, within

:52:16. > :52:20.that lead five, they have to wait until the 5th man crosses the line

:52:21. > :52:25.and then those ahead of that 5th man and any that happen to be stuck on

:52:26. > :52:28.his back wheel gets the same time. Everybody else gets their unique

:52:29. > :52:36.time which is a big deficit for some guys especially if you get shipped

:52:37. > :52:41.out early. It looks like they're riding into sunshine. The ultimate

:52:42. > :52:48.time won't be pleasurable for them. 16th at the first time check, 48

:52:49. > :52:53.seconds down. Haven't reached the second time check. They have already

:52:54. > :53:02.lost a huge chunk of time already today. Dan Edwards is accusing me of

:53:03. > :53:04.screaming. Dan, this is jazz club compared to what's going to come.

:53:05. > :53:11.There will be plenty of screaming tomorrow. We have, of course, sprint

:53:12. > :53:15.sprinting Belfast out and back again. I hope the weather does cheer

:53:16. > :53:19.up for us because there's spectacular scenery up to the

:53:20. > :53:27.Giant's Causeway. Then we are heading for Dublin. And the first of

:53:28. > :53:34.three rest days and then we start in Italy and then we will be hitting

:53:35. > :53:45.the mountains the next day. We have some serious climbing here. Serious

:53:46. > :53:53.contender has to be that man. Riding for Team Sky last year. Uran, after

:53:54. > :54:00.Wiggins going out through injury, ran second over overall. He is now

:54:01. > :54:25.the team leader of this squad. They Off the ramp and away they go. I

:54:26. > :54:36.like this team. This is a team I like. Whether they'll like the

:54:37. > :54:39.course, I think they probably will. AG2R are going to hit above their

:54:40. > :54:48.weight because of conditions. They'll be pleased with their time

:54:49. > :54:53.today. Still a number of riders left for the 5th place. I think again the

:54:54. > :54:57.team that's not really noted for their team time trial capabilities

:54:58. > :55:07.are going to be pleased with that. They're ahead of the likes of Trek

:55:08. > :55:12.Factory Racing. Katusha having a horrendous time today. Rodriguez one

:55:13. > :55:16.of the favourites, the big loser so far. We said you can't win it, but

:55:17. > :57:09.you can lose it. Apologies for the temporary fault.

:57:10. > :57:18.We have now regained control of the Giro d'Italia.

:57:19. > :57:26.Just overlapping the wheel! I think it was Dan Martin the first to

:57:27. > :57:30.crash. Oh, no! That's it. Reaching out for it, grasping at it. This is

:57:31. > :57:36.disaster. It was a drain cover. I don't know

:57:37. > :57:40.whether it started off the skittle. He certainly went down very, very

:57:41. > :57:49.hard indeed. Worse than that, he stayed down. Back on the bike is

:57:50. > :57:53.Nathan Hass. Well, everybody is look looking concerned. This is the

:57:54. > :57:57.reason why. Dan Martin is still on the deck. That's the end of any

:57:58. > :58:00.ambitions he has had for the GC. We just hope that he can continue

:58:01. > :58:12.within the race. Right now he looks in a bad place. We can't see him on

:58:13. > :58:16.the screens. That's the sports director of course looking extremely

:58:17. > :58:21.concerned. It could not have got off to a worse start for this team. We

:58:22. > :58:30.have one rider with a pedal missing actually at the moment, as you can

:58:31. > :58:38.see. That looks like a - explain the position of the rider. Here he is.

:58:39. > :58:46.Dan Martin. He is clearly feel feeling for the collarbone. I think

:58:47. > :58:52.that's it. Oh, I just don't know what to say really. After so many

:58:53. > :58:57.months of preparation, mental and physical and in the first 15 minutes

:58:58. > :59:03.end up like that, is just horrible to see. Too many riders went down,

:59:04. > :59:06.if you are wondering why they're still riding with damaged bikes,

:59:07. > :59:14.they didn't have enough bikes essentially. They handed them all

:59:15. > :59:17.out. You can't compete on a bike that's mis-sized for you. Dan

:59:18. > :59:22.Martin, if you are just joining us, is on the deck. It looks like a

:59:23. > :59:29.broken collarbone. He is in no hurry to get up. He knows the gravity of

:59:30. > :59:38.the situation. . What a shame for Dan Martin. They've

:59:39. > :59:42.regathered themselves, they're getting the news through on big

:59:43. > :59:48.screens for them to see proceedings. They will not have liked the sight,

:59:49. > :59:57.who would, of Dan Martin hitting the deck. It was eight terrain, a drain

:59:58. > :00:04.cover. They have all had to deal with that. But it seemed to just

:00:05. > :00:09.chucked out to one side. -- a drain. He went down hard on his left

:00:10. > :00:19.hand side. We will get back to them in a moment. One minute and 14

:00:20. > :00:30.seconds down, 10th at the moment. But the Team that will be last, I'm

:00:31. > :00:34.afraid, is Garmin-Sharp. Apologies for the break-up with the

:00:35. > :00:39.pictures. But while we were away, some drama on the course involving

:00:40. > :00:43.Garmin-Sharp. But the show you what happened. On a straight piece of

:00:44. > :00:53.road, the riders were in great position, a very professional

:00:54. > :00:58.outfit. Of course, this was Dan Martin's Team, one of the three

:00:59. > :01:05.Irish riders. And we have spoken about how the rain has affected this

:01:06. > :01:10.race. And I think what happens here, it looks like a drain cover

:01:11. > :01:16.just takes the wheel. And four riders fell, including, hugely

:01:17. > :01:20.disappointing, Dan Martin. He is holding his left clavicle, or his

:01:21. > :01:25.elbow. It looks like he has done serious damage to his elbow. The

:01:26. > :01:30.Portuguese rider, Nathan Hass, also down. And they are already down to

:01:31. > :01:35.eight. This happened just a couple of seconds ago. An absolute disaster

:01:36. > :01:41.for Garmin-Sharp, left with only four riders are bright. So this is

:01:42. > :01:47.the end of any kind of hopes in the race for any of the riders. But the

:01:48. > :01:50.big issue, the big story, is that Dan Martin went down first,

:01:51. > :02:00.extremely hard. And he was left lying on the road looking like a

:02:01. > :02:03.rider with a broken collarbone. The collarbone is a regular injury and

:02:04. > :02:08.riders know when they have done it. He went down very hard. Desperately

:02:09. > :02:12.unlucky. It looks like he caught the drain cover and of course, it would

:02:13. > :02:19.be very greasy. Remember what happened to Dan before. It was one

:02:20. > :02:25.of the big one-day races and he was in a great position coming into the

:02:26. > :02:30.final sprint. And he went down on a small patch of oil, very hard. He is

:02:31. > :02:34.really not having much luck at the minute. And these time trial bikes,

:02:35. > :02:38.when one goes, they are very difficult to manoeuvre. They are

:02:39. > :02:43.quite rigid. It is not as easy to handle. You are tucked up low. You

:02:44. > :02:47.have not got your hands on the brakes. You are not thinking about

:02:48. > :02:55.sharp manoeuvres. When something goes wrong, they all go down. And

:02:56. > :03:13.the riders who stayed upright went on, but they are having to wait for

:03:14. > :03:16.their team-mates. But the team did not have enough bikes. They have

:03:17. > :03:20.clearly damaged the right hand pedal, you can see, just to get to

:03:21. > :03:24.the finish. They were left there for so long, trying to get sorted out,

:03:25. > :03:28.that other teams came past them. We're not talking about losing a

:03:29. > :03:33.minute or two, we're talking about the loss of an enormous amount of

:03:34. > :03:37.time. It is a horrible thing to see. And you feel so helpless. It they

:03:38. > :03:42.will have spent months getting ready for this. Months of preparation and

:03:43. > :03:48.it all disappears in the blink of an eye. Dan Martin's Giro d'Italia may

:03:49. > :03:53.have lasted less than 20 minutes. That is not something anyone

:03:54. > :04:01.deserves. Well, we will keep you updated with what is happening on

:04:02. > :04:10.the course. This is the last team about to start, coming down the

:04:11. > :04:14.ramp. This is the 22nd team to come out on the road, and I'd imagine

:04:15. > :04:18.that all of the information is being relayed to all the teams. Look, it

:04:19. > :04:23.is wet out there and there are patches where it might be greasy.

:04:24. > :04:27.Just be careful. We have had a shower evening and some of the debts

:04:28. > :04:33.of road are dry. Everybody has to deal with the same conditions. You

:04:34. > :04:37.have to deal with what you get because it is an open road. The

:04:38. > :04:42.riders are used to this random element but whether these riders

:04:43. > :04:47.know that Garmin-Sharp has gone down, I not sure. The referee will

:04:48. > :04:51.know but he will be telling them to be careful. The Director will want

:04:52. > :04:56.to know what has happened because he has radio contact with the riders.

:04:57. > :05:01.He can tell them when they need to press on. There are the Garmin-Sharp

:05:02. > :05:05.riders, still operate. Five of them there, we are pleased to say,

:05:06. > :05:12.finishing and coming back. But they will have a very poor time. Let's

:05:13. > :05:21.get back to commentary. We're looking at Garmin-Sharp,

:05:22. > :05:26.hobbled team. When we said the result would be favourable, we're

:05:27. > :05:32.talking about them not being thrown off the race because of exceeding

:05:33. > :05:37.the time limits. We're trying to count how many riders are remaining.

:05:38. > :05:42.BMC Racing, two of their riders crashed in training. That was the

:05:43. > :05:50.first to be distanced in the race quite early on. 16 and a half

:05:51. > :05:54.minutes so far. The time for them, 17 minutes and 37 seconds. I think

:05:55. > :06:03.BMC will be up towards 18 minutes when they come through. So, Cadel

:06:04. > :06:08.Evans has a great chance today. I think the field is being thinned

:06:09. > :06:14.down, either by accident or by lack of efficacy when it comes to team

:06:15. > :06:19.time trial on. Rodriguez started amongst the top four for this title

:06:20. > :06:30.and has been hobbled by an appalling team time trial. Cadel Evans cannot

:06:31. > :06:34.measure himself against Quintana. Movistar have had a good run, fifth

:06:35. > :06:39.quickest. But they had the best of the teams that contain the main

:06:40. > :06:47.contenders. Don't forget, huge gaps get thrown up. Garmin Sharp are

:06:48. > :06:50.coming through and the crowd know what has happened. Some of them are

:06:51. > :06:55.looking for Dan Martin, looking in vain. It will be a huge

:06:56. > :07:05.disappointment for some of the people here, who maybe do not know

:07:06. > :07:15.exactly what has happened. I would say that the tour is very much over

:07:16. > :07:20.for them. No confirmation about Dan Martin, but he will be out of this

:07:21. > :07:25.year's Giro d'Italia, I am afraid. Let's look at their average read.

:07:26. > :07:30.Listen to the roar of the cloud. -- the roar of the crowd. Gladiators,

:07:31. > :07:38.all of them. 28 minutes given away. That would be it for the challenge

:07:39. > :07:43.if it was not for the break. News from the course. Team BMC have

:07:44. > :07:49.come through the second time check ten seconds down on the leaders.

:07:50. > :07:53.They are closing in on the Australian squad. And this could be

:07:54. > :08:09.a lot closer than we were expecting after we sought Orica's time. --

:08:10. > :08:13.after we saw. This is Astana. We asked them and

:08:14. > :08:20.that is the correct way to pronounce the name. They sent that is what

:08:21. > :08:25.they are called so that is what we are calling them. Heading towards

:08:26. > :08:32.the first intermediate time check. I've reckon they will go well. And

:08:33. > :08:40.this will be good news for Scarponi. And a Spaniard, if yields on and

:08:41. > :08:44.does not do what Anton did, getting dropped by the Movistar team early

:08:45. > :08:51.on. He was expected to go well in the mountains but he will not be a

:08:52. > :08:55.challenger for the title. Should anything happen to Quintana, as has

:08:56. > :09:00.happened to Dan Martin, let's not wish that on anyone, Anton would

:09:01. > :09:05.have been the default to take over the team principal role. Let more

:09:06. > :09:19.pressure -- yet more pressure on Quintana. Can he take it? This team

:09:20. > :09:27.might looks like a laundry accident. Last team, out the opening day. The

:09:28. > :09:34.first of the grand Tours, Belfast, our home and hospital destination,

:09:35. > :09:41.if you happen to be Dan Martin. Leaden skies, and here we are. Not

:09:42. > :09:46.sure who that is coming through. Certainly not Dan Martin, who we

:09:47. > :09:51.believe is taking no further part in the race. Everybody is

:09:52. > :10:01.disappointed, including us. Why was looking forward to see them. And

:10:02. > :10:09.party any, coming towards the end. -- Bardiani. And they will be going

:10:10. > :10:17.for individual stage victories. No juicy contenders, I am afraid, among

:10:18. > :10:23.them. 30 seconds down in eighth place, but

:10:24. > :10:37.low Orica-GreenEdge. One more team to come through. That is Neri

:10:38. > :10:54.Sottoli, we are not expecting to be in contention.

:10:55. > :11:05.Astana, still running. And in the dry, I guess there's a lot of talk

:11:06. > :11:09.about diesel particles in this part of the world. Tends to be the

:11:10. > :11:15.favourite fuel in this part of the world. We have not had huge

:11:16. > :11:24.downpours, so you tends to get a scooter resurface when there is

:11:25. > :11:29.light drizzle. BMC Racing, in the red. The man who will be feeling in

:11:30. > :11:36.the pink is Cadel Evans, in the red helmet. Very handy for us to pick

:11:37. > :11:43.him out. And Cadel Evans is going to have a birthday present here, not

:11:44. > :11:47.that he would want to wish ill on anybody, certainly the injury that

:11:48. > :11:56.Dan Martin has suffered other the news that Quintana and Rodriguez

:11:57. > :12:02.have had difficulty, EMC are clearly going to push Orica-GreenEdge's

:12:03. > :12:10.time. -- BMC. The time will not be too bad. We have mentioned

:12:11. > :12:16.Scarponi. But they have a young rider, Fabio Aru, who was very

:12:17. > :12:20.impressive last year. One year on, one you're more experienced. I think

:12:21. > :12:27.perhaps he could do something special. I mean top ten overall. It

:12:28. > :12:35.will be interesting to see. Here comes BMC. In their pomp. Just go

:12:36. > :12:43.for it buys, that is the call. -- boys. They have done well to get

:12:44. > :12:48.back into the fray. Cadel Evans at the front, and it may well be he who

:12:49. > :12:58.is allowed to take the line. He is a man who will function brilliantly in

:12:59. > :13:02.the mountains. He has thrilled as a rider ever since he was a young man.

:13:03. > :13:10.Approaching the end of the run. They are going to have fun here. 900

:13:11. > :13:18.metres to go. Look at this time! The target time is 24 minutes and 42

:13:19. > :13:22.seconds and I think Cadel Evans will feel like a very happy Antipodean at

:13:23. > :13:25.the end of today. We thought that perhaps Nicholas Roach was going to

:13:26. > :13:29.be the best place rider at the end of today but it looks like it is

:13:30. > :13:37.going to be the Australian, Cadel Evans, winner of the Tour de France

:13:38. > :13:45.in 2011 and 30 last year -- third here last year. The last turn. 250

:13:46. > :13:47.metres from the line. It may not be good enough to beat Orica-GreenEdge

:13:48. > :13:55.but it will push them close. Very tight indeed. 150 metres or so to

:13:56. > :14:00.go. It is going to be second place for BMC but among the GC boys, they

:14:01. > :14:06.will be the daddies. And Cadel Evans as done an absolutely amazing time,

:14:07. > :14:09.as had his team. They have happy blessing of the weather, all right,

:14:10. > :14:13.but nonetheless, that was impressive. It certainly was and

:14:14. > :14:18.they will be extremely pleased with that time today. A lot of time that

:14:19. > :14:26.Evans has put into his work has been in this race. More than some of his

:14:27. > :14:43.rivals, including Rodrigues, who was 18 seconds down on Evans overall. A

:14:44. > :14:47.lot of Cadel fans out there. Good time trialing from BMC and from

:14:48. > :14:53.Cadel Evans. That's a super effort. First blood to Cadel in the race for

:14:54. > :15:01.the overall. He has a significant advantage over Rodriguez now, more

:15:02. > :15:05.than a minute in front of him. Particular Particularly the team

:15:06. > :15:10.time trial is not one of the BMC focuses. Orica were focussed on then

:15:11. > :15:14.stage. BMC came with the riders they've got. It shows not only is

:15:15. > :15:18.Cadel in great shape but the team is, as well. He will be very, very

:15:19. > :15:21.pleased going to bed tonight. He is a great individual time trialer with

:15:22. > :15:25.that crouched position low on the bike. Yeah, there is a long

:15:26. > :15:30.individual time trial in the middle of the Giro, a long flattish

:15:31. > :15:33.individual time trial which Cadel will be well placed for. You would

:15:34. > :15:37.expect him to get the best time there, as well. Even one day into

:15:38. > :15:41.the Giro d'Italia it's beginning to look good at the moment for Cadel

:15:42. > :15:45.Evans. All the climbs in the last week of the race it can go wrong but

:15:46. > :15:50.for the moment he will be content with his day's work. A good day for

:15:51. > :15:54.him, not such a good day for Dan Martin. Disappointing to see him

:15:55. > :15:58.come down and nurse that shoulder and according to the commentary,

:15:59. > :16:02.when we heard from Carlton in commentary that Dan is out of the

:16:03. > :16:05.race, hugely disappointing. I feel desperate for Dan Martin. You

:16:06. > :16:09.prepare for these events for a long time. This has been a focus to come,

:16:10. > :16:14.the Giro d'Italia, on home soil with a strong team. It's something that

:16:15. > :16:17.he will have been working to for many weeks, months now. For it all

:16:18. > :16:22.to end as adruptly as that and the way it did -- abruptly, and to make

:16:23. > :16:26.it worse being the firs rider down, it's not really his fault -- first.

:16:27. > :16:32.It's not the way you want the day to end. I feel desperate for him. He

:16:33. > :16:39.came down on Newtownards Road. It's actual actually on Upper Newtownards

:16:40. > :16:44.Road where one of the great personities of cycling --

:16:45. > :16:48.personalities of cycling has a shop and were having a party today. Hard

:16:49. > :16:51.to beat this. It's all happening here! It's the place to be. Let's go

:16:52. > :16:59.and find Dave. He was working on this bike. Dave,

:17:00. > :17:03.did you imagine when you got this shop running years ago the Giro

:17:04. > :17:06.d'Italia will be going past the front door? It's fantastic for the

:17:07. > :17:10.cycling community. For Northern Ireland, as well, for the economy,

:17:11. > :17:14.for tourism, spectacular. Brilliant. All the big names in cycling have

:17:15. > :17:24.been to see you when they've been here. Kelly and Roche and the German

:17:25. > :17:33.pursuit champion was in. It's all happening. You are a legend. It's a

:17:34. > :17:40.family steeped in cycling tradition. Mark is at the shop, busy. Mark, we

:17:41. > :17:45.will take you away from the customers. Can you believe it's

:17:46. > :17:50.here, it's all happening outside the front of the shop. It's incredible.

:17:51. > :17:55.This morning the taster we got with the practice laps and the crowd and

:17:56. > :18:06.the atmosphere was just unbelievable. Still don't think it's

:18:07. > :18:11.sunk in. In 2008 I went over to the Dolomites watching and when we past

:18:12. > :18:18.a bike shop, it was ten kilometres from the finish, on the window he

:18:19. > :18:23.had a sign saying closed. Don't think you would see that in our shop

:18:24. > :18:28.and now it's coming past the door. Can you believe the buzz in Belfast?

:18:29. > :18:33.It's incredible how everybody's got into the Giro and it's building up

:18:34. > :18:39.that this evening will make for a big party. It wouldn't be the same

:18:40. > :18:43.without a few buns. Jill, I will save you one, but not this one!

:18:44. > :18:46.Very nice indeed. Let's get back to the action.

:18:47. > :18:56.. The line beckons. They might get

:18:57. > :19:01.second ahead of BMC. Here we go. There it is.

:19:02. > :19:08.They do by a margin of two seconds. Five seconds down on Orica

:19:09. > :19:17.Greenedge. I think they'll take that. They probably will do. Omega

:19:18. > :19:25.Pharma-Quickstep. Terrific that we have a good performance by Evans BMC

:19:26. > :19:30.team. They worked for that. Perhaps more than you think. It's not their

:19:31. > :19:32.A-Team as far as team more than you think. It's not their

:19:33. > :19:36.concerned. I think they took a step above themselves there. They

:19:37. > :19:42.certainly did. I was not thinking they were going to finish mid-pack

:19:43. > :19:51.by any means, but they lacked the likes of Mark Cavendish. I thought

:19:52. > :19:55.they might struggle to be up there with the big guns today but they've

:19:56. > :20:08.proved me wrong. Maybe it's the weight of expectation. They decided

:20:09. > :20:19.to match it. This is Astana, looking slightly ragged. They've about four

:20:20. > :20:23.minutes of their run to go. Neri Sottoli will finish today. It's been

:20:24. > :20:29.a dramatic day. Plenty to talk about and plenty to hide your eyes,

:20:30. > :20:34.because unfortunately, if you are just joining us and wondering how

:20:35. > :20:50.Dan Martin has done, he has done a collarbone. Ne Sottoli -- Neri.

:20:51. > :20:56.Almost into the sunshine. The gloom is starting to lift at the end of

:20:57. > :21:04.today. We had some performances, I guess in terms of the overall sort

:21:05. > :21:07.of near tragedies today, thank Heavens that everyone is OK but it's

:21:08. > :21:11.a broken collarbone we believe for Dan Martin. That corner is an

:21:12. > :21:17.absolute nightmare. There's been several of them. At least they got

:21:18. > :21:28.around that reasonably cleanly! That was, for me anyway, a sharp intake

:21:29. > :21:35.of breath. I wasn't expecting him to get around that. It's a very

:21:36. > :21:53.experienced squad. Experience and youth, you might say. They start

:21:54. > :22:00.with Scarponi. He is always consistent. It's a squad that can do

:22:01. > :22:06.a lot of things over the next three weeks especially in the mountains.

:22:07. > :22:13.Do you have to drive the climbs here and Astana doing a good job. Neri

:22:14. > :22:16.Sottoli are down to six already. There is a burden of going last, you

:22:17. > :22:19.know what you have to do and where you are likely to feature. Right

:22:20. > :22:23.now, unfortunately, the main feature is the fact that they are

:22:24. > :22:29.diminishing with every pedal stroke, it looks like. Yeah, as we said, as

:22:30. > :22:33.they roll down the start ramp, the last team to do so today, they

:22:34. > :22:37.aren't at all at the top of things when we come to think of teams that

:22:38. > :22:43.might do well in the team time trial. The order of depart for those

:22:44. > :22:49.who have joined us, is ran dam. They pick names -- random. They pick

:22:50. > :23:00.names out of the hat. We haven't had a big climax, but we have with those

:23:01. > :23:04.teams pushing Orica. These last two teams I don't think are going to

:23:05. > :23:11.come close. I don't think they will. They'll have a go. One thing has

:23:12. > :23:16.been constant, it's been the warmth of the welcome. It's been terrific

:23:17. > :23:23.to see the crowds just unconcerned, it seems, by the rain that has

:23:24. > :23:29.fallen. It's a dry run for those going off, but I am afraid for the

:23:30. > :23:33.likes of Neri Sottoli it's not going to help their cause much today. Some

:23:34. > :23:42.great racing nonetheless against the clock. Astana coming to the end of

:23:43. > :23:45.their run, it's not going to be a bad one. They'll be reasonably

:23:46. > :23:52.pleased with the time they'll put in today. The big winners from today,

:23:53. > :23:58.we talked about Orica Greenedge, but in terms of the GC rides, Evans and

:23:59. > :24:12.Uran looking very strong after one day of racing. Uran the best of all

:24:13. > :24:22.the GC riders if you dis discount Santori.

:24:23. > :24:30.150 metres for Astana, it's going to be outside the top five for them, I

:24:31. > :24:38.believe. Team Sky going off in damp conditions. Astana on a dry run not

:24:39. > :24:44.getting as close as Sky on a mixed run, wet and dry. And we are not

:24:45. > :24:50.talking sandpaper. So, it's one more team still to come. Neri Sottoli,

:24:51. > :24:54.five more minutes before they hit the line. Well, we know our result

:24:55. > :24:59.because I have to tell you that they're not going to set the world

:25:00. > :25:09.on fire, despite the brightness of their jerseys. Astana just across

:25:10. > :25:12.the line. 6th place there. 38 seconds down on the leaders. They'll

:25:13. > :25:20.be pretty pleased with their time. It puts them ahead of a number of

:25:21. > :25:24.key rivals. But so many stages still to come. Anything can happen. There

:25:25. > :25:27.will be a few pleased people and a few extremely disappointed people at

:25:28. > :25:33.the end of today. I am intrigued to listen to the reaction of Rodriguez

:25:34. > :25:38.at the end of today's stage. No disrespect to Neri Sottoli but it

:25:39. > :25:45.gives us an opportunity to talk about tomorrow. It's going to be

:25:46. > :25:50.wet, we are praying that's not the case. It's going to be a pleasure

:25:51. > :25:54.hopefully. Same finish line as today, from a different direction.

:25:55. > :25:57.Normally it should be a bunched sprint finish, depends on how much

:25:58. > :26:02.wind there is. Looking at the wind direction earlier I decided that

:26:03. > :26:09.it's not too likely to split up on stage two, whether the same can be

:26:10. > :26:21.said for stage three I am not sure. Forecast for Sunday gusty winds as

:26:22. > :26:36.they head south and south-east. We could see some echelon.

:26:37. > :26:44.They're all right. They got awhich with that. -- away with that. I

:26:45. > :26:48.reckon that tomorrow with a ten-second bonus at the line he has

:26:49. > :26:55.to fancy being in that leader's jersey. I think so, yeah. Michael

:26:56. > :26:59.Matthews, two stage wins last year. He only has to finish ahead of his

:27:00. > :27:04.team-mates tomorrow, which he will do as they'll be leading him out for

:27:05. > :27:07.the sprint finish. What an experience that will be for the

:27:08. > :27:13.young Australian. There he is looking very happy with himself with

:27:14. > :27:20.his pierced and diamond-studded ears, I believe they're diamonds!

:27:21. > :27:25.Well, they're talking about the chase being on right now. There's

:27:26. > :27:31.still one team on course. But it's all done and dusted. I think I might

:27:32. > :27:36.bid you farewell at the moment and head down to see the Australian team

:27:37. > :27:43.and hopefully get an interview with the director and also Sven. Dan,

:27:44. > :27:48.thanks. He will take his leave. Thank you to all of you who have

:27:49. > :27:51.joined us on Twitter today. It's been a pleasure to have your

:27:52. > :27:57.company. Don't forget you can send us your thoughts post-race and

:27:58. > :28:08.indeed throughout this Giro d'Italia. Yes, Dan Martin, sadly,

:28:09. > :28:18.without of the Giro d'Italia with a broken collarbone. Orica Greenedge

:28:19. > :28:26.had a mission today and mission accomplished.

:28:27. > :28:29.Meanwhile, Neri Sottoli, no disrespect whatsoever, but their

:28:30. > :28:43.time is not going to set the world on fire. There we are, they'll be

:28:44. > :28:47.taking this turn. They've been blessed with a dry run, so this may

:28:48. > :29:18.well flatter them ever so slightly. Starting tomorrow we have three

:29:19. > :29:24.sprint stages. Then we climb. An old Monday astroery was rebuilt --

:29:25. > :29:28.monastery. Some of the performances today have been. It's not only about

:29:29. > :29:33.setting your rhythm, it's about having the focus to turn your mind

:29:34. > :29:36.away from the weather and on to the rigours of team time trialing, we

:29:37. > :29:41.have seen terrific performances today. Final bend with 300 to go.

:29:42. > :29:50.They'll open up the taps in the run for the line. 200 metres. The men in

:29:51. > :29:55.yellow finishing their run and drawing the opening stage of this

:29:56. > :30:02.97th Giro d'Italia to a close. Plenty more still to come, of

:30:03. > :30:07.course. 20 more stages in the run. Belfast has been our glorious start

:30:08. > :30:20.to this first of the Grand Tours. And indeed first team at the top of

:30:21. > :30:23.the real-time screens. Orica-GreenEdge take over the Kings

:30:24. > :30:30.seat. And they have not been dislodged. They are the leaders and

:30:31. > :30:34.we will be speaking to the birthday boy, the Canadian within that

:30:35. > :30:39.largely Australian team. He will have the pink jersey. Dan Lloyd is

:30:40. > :30:47.heading down to have a chat with some of those who have been blessed

:30:48. > :30:51.today, it's fair to say. And there is confirmation thereof the result.

:30:52. > :30:55.Orica-GreenEdge with a time of 24 minutes and 42 seconds. Mike Farmer

:30:56. > :31:04.quickstep did a great job to get close to them. BMC and Cadel Evans

:31:05. > :31:11.in third place. Tinkoff-Saxo fourth ahead of Team Sky. Astana are in

:31:12. > :31:15.sixth place. Cannondale and Movistar can feel aggrieved. 55 seconds down.

:31:16. > :31:25.Quintana has imagined decline, quite literally. He needs to go well. He

:31:26. > :31:30.needs to find 55 seconds if he is going to get the better of Rigoberto

:31:31. > :31:40.Uran. There are the time trial standings. Some big gaps. All were

:31:41. > :31:53.down to Lotto-Belisol and Garmin Sharp. The sad news is that Daniel

:31:54. > :32:05.Martin is out of the Giro d'Italia. Saint aft is our leader in the

:32:06. > :32:09.overall standings. -- Svein Tuft. But Michael Matthews, if he wins the

:32:10. > :32:13.sprint stage tomorrow, it would be hard to get against him. He only

:32:14. > :32:24.needs to beat his team-mates. He may not win the day that might be Marcel

:32:25. > :32:30.can tell. -- Quintana. Happy birthday. Not much better way

:32:31. > :32:38.to celebrate it than with a pink jersey. It has been an amazing day.

:32:39. > :32:43.An amazing way to spend your birthday. To finish on that way,

:32:44. > :32:48.what a treat. Cannot thank my team enough for giving that opportunity.

:32:49. > :32:53.It is a once-in-a-lifetime for a guy like me. And what a fantastic team.

:32:54. > :32:57.And the other riders in the team, first participants this year, they

:32:58. > :33:03.must be over the moon. I was just opting to Michael Hepburn, and he

:33:04. > :33:09.said, is this how it always is?! I was like, no, it is a special day.

:33:10. > :33:13.There was a predetermined plan to cross the finish line first. Was

:33:14. > :33:20.that decided during the stage or in advance? They gave me the gift. It

:33:21. > :33:25.was a birthday present. This team is really selfless in that way. I'd

:33:26. > :33:31.feel really fortunate to be given that gift on my birthday.

:33:32. > :33:35.Congratulations. I hope we see you again tomorrow.

:33:36. > :33:40.What a nice man and what a nice present.

:33:41. > :33:45.Orica-GreenEdge, they came through mixed conditions and delivered

:33:46. > :33:56.today. The nearest him to them, Rigoberto Uran's team. Ahead by just

:33:57. > :34:04.a second. I heard of the DNC boys. No doubt about the winners. As you

:34:05. > :34:16.saw, spent aft, very grateful. -- Svein Tuft.

:34:17. > :34:24.Belfast, we have some winners and some significant losers. Dan Martin,

:34:25. > :34:31.of course, has taken a fall in the wet. And Joaquim Rodriguez, he fails

:34:32. > :37:40.to fire on all cylinders on a damp day.

:37:41. > :37:51.The thing about luck is it comes and goes. And it is not handed out

:37:52. > :37:54.fairly. Today, no doubting our winners and their credentials.

:37:55. > :37:57.Absolutely fabulous and a great result it certainly was. For all of

:37:58. > :38:05.those on the podium, Orica-GreenEdge, Oregon Farmer

:38:06. > :38:16.quickstep and GMC. They can take the drive and pleasure in their

:38:17. > :38:24.performances. -- Micah Farmer quickstep. A great effort. They

:38:25. > :38:34.delivered every way. Horrific. You would be hard pushed to meet a nicer

:38:35. > :38:43.bunch of guys. And this bodes well. Our leader is a Canadian. Svein

:38:44. > :38:51.Tuft. It will take a while for them all to be handed flowers. But it

:38:52. > :38:57.will be Softy who takes the bunch. Third from left, Michael Matthews is

:38:58. > :39:09.likely to take over that pink jersey. -- Tufty. Matthews issued,

:39:10. > :39:17.by rights, be in a different jersey tomorrow. -- Matthews should. Ladies

:39:18. > :39:22.and gentlemen, the winners of stage 1... The rain is coming down again.

:39:23. > :39:27.It is expected to login for tomorrow. You never know, if it

:39:28. > :39:35.stays wet as we head up to the northern coast, here in Northern

:39:36. > :39:40.Ireland, it may well prove to be a difficult day for many. Let's hope

:39:41. > :39:45.not. It is a difficult day for Irish cycling fans, I'm afraid to tell

:39:46. > :39:50.you, that Dan Martin has found himself on the wrong end of an

:39:51. > :39:56.injury today. He is out of this year's Giro d'Italia. No hiding the

:39:57. > :40:10.joy and sense of achievement from these boys.

:40:11. > :40:17.Svein Tuft, look at that. What a birthday, one he will never forget!

:40:18. > :40:23.Surrounded by his mates. Hoisted aloft. He will be wearing the pink

:40:24. > :40:32.jersey. I do not know what has happened to it. Maybe everyone is

:40:33. > :40:43.scared of them. Or scared of the fizzy stuff. Michael Matthews,

:40:44. > :40:49.Catherine Meyer, Svein Tuft... So we will start handing out the jersey in

:40:50. > :40:57.just a few moments time. No king of the mountains today. But we may

:40:58. > :41:10.well, you never know, they may well have declared it. No more interviews

:41:11. > :41:19.today. It looks like the teams have decided to take themselves off to

:41:20. > :41:30.the buses as we speak. The second charge of confetti has been put into

:41:31. > :41:35.the canon. -- canon. And our PA is on stage, announcing that we're

:41:36. > :41:46.going to hand over the leaders jersey and here it is. Coveted, most

:41:47. > :42:00.certainly. And a delight. To our leader, Svein Tuft.

:42:01. > :42:05.And now the first pink jersey of the 2014 Giro d'Italia, from

:42:06. > :42:17.Orica-GreenEdge, the Canadian rider, on his birthday, Svein Tuft!

:42:18. > :42:37.Svein Tuft, happy birthday. What about that?

:42:38. > :42:48.Presented by the tourism minister. And our proud sponsors of the Giro

:42:49. > :43:11.d'Italia. The smile is mile wide. Fantastic to

:43:12. > :43:16.see Svein Tuft enjoying that. Says it is a gift from his team-mates but

:43:17. > :43:18.if you sort the effort he was putting in as he came up to the

:43:19. > :43:25.finishing line, he was not a passenger. They all wrote superbly.

:43:26. > :43:29.I was very impressed with them, riding that had, managing to

:43:30. > :43:36.organise themselves to get across the line. The team is confident, and

:43:37. > :43:42.working together. And Orica-GreenEdge came here with this

:43:43. > :43:46.very much in mind. We saw how dominant they could be in the time

:43:47. > :43:53.trial last summer. But this was the goal. This was the goal. It was the

:43:54. > :43:56.first stage. And that always gets a lot of publicity and interest. And

:43:57. > :44:00.they are a team that are well adapted to it. He did not actually

:44:01. > :44:05.have the best weather in the end. They had to deal with showers on the

:44:06. > :44:09.course. The plan perfectly and that is what you get. If you get one of

:44:10. > :44:13.you guys in the pink jersey, you are happy. A great party behind us and

:44:14. > :44:18.fantastic to see so many of the crowd staying for the presentation

:44:19. > :44:24.and joining in the celebrations. They are lapping up the location.

:44:25. > :44:27.The atmosphere outside City Hall has been fantastic. It has been a great

:44:28. > :44:33.thing to see in Belfast and a big, exciting event. People who might not

:44:34. > :44:40.have had a lot of interest in bike racing have really engaged in it and

:44:41. > :44:45.have become part of it. Lovely to think they'll be inspired.

:44:46. > :44:49.Tremendous to see that. Well, one young Irishman we would like to hear

:44:50. > :44:55.from, it was a bad day for Dan Martin, he is out of the race, but

:44:56. > :45:00.one of the Irish riders is with Team Sky. Philip Deignan spoke to Gavin

:45:01. > :45:05.after their ride. What did you make of this reception?

:45:06. > :45:09.It was incredible. Yesterday, I won't forget yesterday's reception

:45:10. > :45:12.in a while. It was amazing. Incredible the way people here have

:45:13. > :45:18.taken to the race and the atmosphere is amazing. Even the rain hasn't put

:45:19. > :45:21.people off. And the crowds, did you see any? Just a wall of noise. I

:45:22. > :45:26.couldn't really make out much. I heard a lot of Phillips and stuff,

:45:27. > :45:29.it was nice. Did you get the worst of the conditions, are you happy

:45:30. > :45:33.with the time? I don't even know the time. Obviously you are going to

:45:34. > :45:39.lose a lot on those corners. You can't carry the same speed through.

:45:40. > :45:47.Third at this stage. Yeah, it shows what maybe we could have done on a

:45:48. > :45:55.dry circuit. That's cycling. See you tomorrow. Cheers.

:45:56. > :46:00.There we go. Philip Deignan certainly enjoyed the experience. He

:46:01. > :46:04.described it as a wall of noise. In an event like this you can't pick

:46:05. > :46:07.out faces or hear shouts, you get a wonderful roar. It's a real

:46:08. > :46:11.motivation. It gives a lot of atmosphere. A lot of the riders,

:46:12. > :46:14.some new riders riding their first Grand Tour apparently have been

:46:15. > :46:17.asking their team-mates, is it always like this? Team-mates are

:46:18. > :46:21.saying no, this one is special. That's what we have seen tonight. We

:46:22. > :46:26.heard from Philip there, before he probably knew what happened to Dan

:46:27. > :46:30.Martin. Let's look at that crash. A horrible to see them come down so

:46:31. > :46:36.hard on the Newtownards Road. It's very, very tough. It's unlucky. You

:46:37. > :46:39.can see what happened. One rider goes down and everybody else crashes

:46:40. > :46:47.over him. It's very unpleasant to look at. Four riders coming down. At

:46:48. > :46:51.this point they were down to eight. The chances of Garmin at this stage

:46:52. > :47:00.done gone. They would have been hoping to put in a decent time.

:47:01. > :47:05.Garmin Sharp are well-drilled, know what they're doing and will have

:47:06. > :47:09.been looking for a good result. They were doing well. They weren't

:47:10. > :47:12.leading but were up there at the point when they went down. It's

:47:13. > :47:16.disappointing for the team but devastating clearly are to Dan who

:47:17. > :47:22.would have expected and hoped for so much more. We will not see Dan any

:47:23. > :47:25.more in the Giro d'Italia this year. But we hope to hear how he is and

:47:26. > :47:32.wish him the best. It's tough for him. He will be feeling it a little

:47:33. > :47:39.bit. It looked like a man with a broken shoulder. It's a frequent

:47:40. > :47:44.injury in bike racing and most of the riders know when they've done

:47:45. > :47:52.it, Dan looked like a man with a broken shoulder. There are winners

:47:53. > :47:55.and losers in a day like today, we should mention Katusha and

:47:56. > :48:00.Rodriguez. We don't know what happened there. I think they weren't

:48:01. > :48:03.firing on all cylinders. We didn't see anything in particular went

:48:04. > :48:08.wrong. Not a strong team time trial but they had a bad evening.

:48:09. > :48:12.Rodriguez has lost over a minute on the other contenders before the race

:48:13. > :48:24.has even got out of Belfast. If you look at the GC contenders, the

:48:25. > :48:29.winners will be Rigoberto Uran. Used to ride for Team Sky. That was a

:48:30. > :48:32.good performance from his team. They were really working very hard for

:48:33. > :48:35.that. They've also got a sprinter which becomes relevant in the next

:48:36. > :48:38.few days because there are time bonuses on the sprint stages. They

:48:39. > :48:54.have the potential to get one of their guys into the pink jersey.

:48:55. > :48:58.Stage two will finish here tomorrow afternoon after a magnificent ride

:48:59. > :49:03.up to the north coast of Ireland, stage two starts in Belfast and -

:49:04. > :49:07.ends in Belfast and in between some of the most spectacular scenes in

:49:08. > :49:11.the whole of this Giro. Graeme Little went to look at the route

:49:12. > :49:12.with one of the great icons of the sport, winner in 1987, Stephen

:49:13. > :49:27.Roche. From Titanic skwap skwaurter the

:49:28. > :49:34.race -- Quarter heads to Newton Abbey, past Antrim and then the road

:49:35. > :49:39.to the coast takes them past Ballymena and Slemish Mountain.

:49:40. > :49:43.They'll turn on to the famous coastway route. Around the corner I

:49:44. > :49:47.will pick up a travelling companion who knows a thing or two about bike

:49:48. > :49:54.races. 27 years ago an Irishman became open

:49:55. > :50:00.the second person ever to win the -- only to win Giro d'Italia and Tour

:50:01. > :50:05.in the same year. You are all dressed, ready to ride? I am ready,

:50:06. > :50:10.are you? I am. Let's go. Stephen, I am sure when you are

:50:11. > :50:14.winning this race over a quarter of a century ago you never imagined you

:50:15. > :50:18.would see it on Irish roads? It was impossible to imagine the Giro

:50:19. > :50:24.d'Italia going across to start here in our country, no. Amazing.

:50:25. > :50:27.Tempting as it was to spend an hour or two at the oldest distillery in

:50:28. > :50:32.Ireland, whisky and cycling don't mix. Anyway, Stephen had to meet an

:50:33. > :50:36.opened friend at the Giant's Causeway. -- an old friend at the

:50:37. > :50:41.Giant's Causeway. It's 30 years since we have raced together. A long

:50:42. > :50:45.time. We have aged well. What we have here is a travelling road show.

:50:46. > :50:47.The Giro d'Italia with the caravan and all in front. These roads will

:50:48. > :50:54.be used for years to come. and all in front. These roads will

:50:55. > :50:56.promoters of diven events to ride the roads that the -- different

:50:57. > :50:59.events the roads that the -- different

:51:00. > :51:02.Giro d'Italia was on, it will encourage people from all over the

:51:03. > :51:06.world to be part of something that's historical. This particular part of

:51:07. > :51:11.Ireland, the Glens of Antrim and the coast is something that we see on a

:51:12. > :51:15.daily basis and maybe don't appreciate it. I have been around

:51:16. > :51:19.the world and seen magnificent scenery and yet when I come home I

:51:20. > :51:23.am always blown away. It's breathtaking. We have it and we have

:51:24. > :51:30.to share it with the rest of the world.

:51:31. > :51:33.Oi, come on! The peloton won't have much time for

:51:34. > :51:38.taking in the speck taking lash surroundings of North -- spectacular

:51:39. > :51:46.surroundings of North Antrim but the fans will. This area provides some

:51:47. > :51:49.of the most amazing views in all of Ireland and brilliant if sometimes

:51:50. > :51:57.challenging cycling roads. Stephen, we are about halfway along the coast

:51:58. > :52:01.route now, you must be impressed? I am knackered! It's been a hard day.

:52:02. > :52:08.A beautiful day with the scenery. In the last section the race passes the

:52:09. > :52:13.Glens of Antrim, the Town of Larne and Carrickfergus Castle. It took us

:52:14. > :52:18.so long, did you enjoy it? We had a tourist route. Don't forget, the

:52:19. > :52:23.best cyclists coming along here will be going faster than we are. Ten

:52:24. > :52:27.miles from here into Belfast, they'll be sprinting at this stage.

:52:28. > :52:32.We should do the same. Last one in Belfast buys the beer. I will buy

:52:33. > :52:39.the still water, let's go. My money's on Stephen even so! This is

:52:40. > :52:50.the course. We have seen some of the spectacular scenes along the route.

:52:51. > :52:59.It follows that stunning north coast road back to Belfast. It finishes

:53:00. > :53:02.again here at City Hall. It's a long way, 218 kilometres but

:53:03. > :53:08.it's looking like a sprinter's course, isn't it? It's a long stage

:53:09. > :53:11.but essentially a flat stage. One climb which isn't really going to

:53:12. > :53:16.put anyone in trouble. It's almost certainly going to be a big bunch

:53:17. > :53:23.sprint back here tomorrow. Great to see Stephen Roche enjoying that

:53:24. > :53:27.ride, looking like a young thing. Phenomenal record he has. Of course

:53:28. > :53:36.winner of the Giro d'Italia when he also won the Tour and the World

:53:37. > :53:40.Championship. The triple Crown. Certainly one of the best riders in

:53:41. > :53:43.the history of the sport, he is clearly having a great time with the

:53:44. > :53:48.Giro d'Italia in his own backward. Let's hear from his son, another

:53:49. > :54:07.favourite and hoping to do damage in this race, Nicolas Roche.

:54:08. > :54:13.Finally, the wait is over, most of Ireland has been waiting for this

:54:14. > :54:20.for months, how have you been feeling? The buzz is really mental,

:54:21. > :54:23.it kind of - I feel the same way. At the start I was like, Giro d'Italia

:54:24. > :54:26.is going to start in Ireland, it's like, yeah, cool. Let's change all

:54:27. > :54:31.my programme, I want to be there, it's going to be great. And then a

:54:32. > :54:36.few months ago I was like, wow, this is going to be great. Then I was

:54:37. > :54:41.like, but great, great, you know. And just kind of built up and, you

:54:42. > :54:47.know, I always get superexcited about riding a Grand Tour, there's

:54:48. > :54:53.something special about it, I had that buzz of getting ready for it.

:54:54. > :54:57.Just the fact that now it's in Ireland, it's not the extra

:54:58. > :55:01.pressure, it's actually the extra pleasure. It's great, I love it. Do

:55:02. > :55:06.you think people have a concept of how big a deal this is, even in

:55:07. > :55:12.terms of entourage and scale? I hope now that a lot of people are going

:55:13. > :55:19.to come out and realise how big the sport is and how nice or, can I say

:55:20. > :55:22.kind of cool cycling is. It's not a small amateur race that you have on

:55:23. > :55:26.the side of the road with 20 guise. This is a Giro -- guys, this is the

:55:27. > :55:29.Giro d'Italia, one of the biggest events in the world. I am proud to

:55:30. > :55:36.be able to share that with the people who live here and so they can

:55:37. > :55:40.realise how the sport is. What have the rest of the riders been saying,

:55:41. > :55:45.have they been trying to scout the routes and get inside knowledge? I

:55:46. > :55:48.haven't got much inside, to be honest, haven't much information to

:55:49. > :55:52.give. A lot were asking me earlier how is the weather going to be, I

:55:53. > :55:57.said well if you are lucky it could rain for an hour, if you are unlucky

:55:58. > :56:01.it could rain for the week. That's how Ireland is. The weather is

:56:02. > :56:04.unpredictable. You are guaranteed it's going to rain but guaranteed

:56:05. > :56:10.sooner or later the sun will come out too. Maybe people are kind of

:56:11. > :56:16.already complaining, I was like, Ireland is ten degrees and it's

:56:17. > :56:21.raining, and then you go on the internet and on the Dolomites

:56:22. > :56:27.there's snow, come on, guys, I would rather have rain in Ireland than

:56:28. > :56:33.those snow snowy days! So, obviously I think it would have been just that

:56:34. > :56:39.much more spectacular if the weather was nicer, but that's also part of

:56:40. > :56:42.the luck, you can never guarantee that. You probably spent most of

:56:43. > :56:45.your career getting away from your famous dad and the famous name but I

:56:46. > :56:50.imagine in the weeks running up to this it's all come back and the

:56:51. > :56:53.questions are back again? Yeah, actual actually it's a long time

:56:54. > :56:58.since I hadn't had the questions about my dad. People had turned a

:56:59. > :57:02.page on that, there's no need to do any comparison between myself and

:57:03. > :57:07.him. He was what he was. I do what I do. I am a big fan of what he did. I

:57:08. > :57:13.have all the respect for that. I think people now also realise that

:57:14. > :57:22.there's no point comparing. Great to hear him talking about his

:57:23. > :57:30.dad there. Of course the weather is a national pastime here. We have

:57:31. > :57:36.more action coming up. Tomorrow, as we have shown you, we will be here

:57:37. > :57:40.in Belfast from 2.00pm on BBC2 Northern Ireland. And then on Sunday

:57:41. > :57:45.we head from Armagh down to Dublin for stage three and we are on air on

:57:46. > :57:49.BBC2 Northern Ireland from 2. 30pm but that wraps up the action here.

:57:50. > :57:53.Our thanks to the commentary team and to Michael. It's been a start.

:57:54. > :57:57.It's been a fantastic start to the Giro d'Italia. Such an atmosphere,

:57:58. > :58:01.so many people and people enjoying bike racing. It's been terrific.

:58:02. > :58:04.Hard lines to Dan Martin. We wish him the best with his recovery. Some

:58:05. > :58:12.great performances from some of the big names here. Cadel Evans, Uran.

:58:13. > :58:14.It's Svein Tuft celebrating tonight. Happy birthday to him. We will see

:58:15. > :59:38.you tomorrow. Bye for now. Ulster's last game against Munster

:59:39. > :59:40.in January Now with the Ulstermen's top four

:59:41. > :59:46.place secure, it's a chance to impress

:59:47. > :59:48.before the Pro12 play offs. Ulster playing some

:59:49. > :59:58.enterprising rugby. You've dug, you've sown,

:59:59. > :00:00.you've planted, you've watered, you've trimmed,

:00:01. > :00:03.you've nurtured. Look what you've grown

:00:04. > :00:06.with your patch of land. A massive thank you for sending in

:00:07. > :00:10.all your pictures, from BBC Two's...