11/05/2014 Giro d'Italia 2014

The Giro bid goodbye to Belfast. Thousands watched Marcel Kittel

stormed to victory. The German powerhouse has now won all stages of

the tours. Michael Matthews will wear the pink journey as they had

South over the border into Dublin this afternoon. We are here with all

the live actions. Hello and welcome. It has been a bit showery here and

I'm joined by Michael Hutchinson again. We are about 100 metres from

the finish line in Dublin. We could not ask for a better spot. It is the

best seat in Dublin. The Sprint will be right behind us. They have given

us a bit of shelter but no walls, so we might have to grab umbrellas if

it starts raining. There have been some heavy downpours earlier today.

There is quite a kink in the course at 150 metres to go. It is a lot

worse in real life. So with a bit of a tail wind, they might come into

that very fast which could be interesting. Marcel Kittel will be

very interesting indeed. He celebrates his 26th birthday today.

This is the route that the riders are taking today. 187 kilometres to

Dublin, a bit shorter than the stage yesterday on the north coast. It

starts at Armagh city just below St Patrick's Cathedral. They head

around the villagers down towards the border. From there, it is

straight down to Dublin along the old road and along the coast. It

will most likely finish with another bunch sprint right here in Dublin

city centre. These were the scenes as the Giro rolled out of Armagh

earlier. Fantastic support once again from those who came out to

support the races. There is Michael Matthews wearing the leader jersey.

Such a great performance in the time trial. He took it yesterday. This

was very much a procession through the streets, letting everybody get a

good look at the riders. A quick burst, one or two riders

keen to stretch their legs and get a feel for it. You can see all the

riders really preparing for what could be a wet day on the roads, all

wearing their rain jackets and everything they can muster to keep

themselves dry. So, beautiful scenes as they ride through the Orchard

County. Nobody was more proud to see them than local rider Stephen

Gallacher. He has been instrumental in planning this route. Is the start

time much different? Realistically, I thought it would be very difficult

to do. I thought there would be enthusiasm at a political and local

level. I understood the logistics of what would be needed to bring a

massive sport event over better than others perhaps, so I could see it

from both sides. We obviously had the bid for this leg against other

cities that were trying to do it. Thankfully, we were successful and

on behalf of the work that they've done at the government level here,

it is a credit to them. I really remember the exploits of some of the

historical races, the romanticism of the sport, that is what planted the

seed in me. It is fantastic to be involved in it. It must be a

complete dream to bring them to your home county. Yes. Whenever you set

back a step back you start to see the other side of it, the enthusiasm

of young people. To bring a sport of this scale to the country at this

time, it is like nothing else. Enthusiasm has grown so much. To

bring all these top, top cyclists, it is a once in a generation chance.

One of my initial roles was to assist RCS and give them local

knowledge in planning the route. It was a chance to ride my bike when I

could and to think, there will be 200 riders coming up over this hill

in two weeks. That was a bit surreal. It is just fantastic and

slightly surreal. One final point. You will sleep a lot next week. What

has the pressure but unlike? -- been like? Yes, my family will be glad to

see me a bit more, I think. Along with the rest of the team, I've been

working very long hours. Sleeping has probably been a luxury over the

last couple of weeks. But it is no different to anybody else. It will

be a big relief, I think. I will certainly enjoy a few days off.

Obviously relishing the opportunity to be involved with this great race.

And we heard from Darren yesterday, he was so important in bringing the

ten won to Northern Ireland. Michael, what have you made of the

route over the past couple of days and what has it meant to this part

of the world? We have showcased some fantastic scenery. I loved the

route. Along the Antrim coast, the rocky headlands and the foreshore

over that iconic road. Today, it is much more rule, the softer, rounder

hills. -- more rural. I think it has showcased Northern Ireland

beautifully. They will be getting to Dublin probably around 4pm depending

on how fast they attack these roads. We will join the live racing very

shortly, but let's just bring you up-to-date with some of the earlier

events on the road. This was the riders approaching the border

heading out of Northern Ireland into the Republic of Ireland. Again, just

blown away by the crowds who have come out day after day, no matter

what the weather. Just a wonderful brother of pink they are riding

alongside. The roads have been two or three deep. It does not get a

reception like this in its own country. Plenty of incidents as

well. There was the odd crash or two yesterday, and we certainly remember

Dan Martin going down heavily on the opening day. This man had a puncture

after going down, I think he clipped a wheel. This is actually the

breakaway, you can see there is a break array -- a breakaway and the

pallet and decided to sprint even though there were no sprint points

on offer. As a result, there was a bit of jockeying for collision. --

the pelaton. The weather seems to have deteriorated a little bit.

At the moment, they have 73 kilometres still to go and the

breakaway up the road has now just about four metres on the main

pelaton. Let's handover to our commentary team, Carlton Kirby and

Dan Lloyd. A feud teams might have wet weather tyres. -- a few teams.

But in general, pretty much just a case of letting a bit of pressure

out of the tyres so there is slightly more grip available around

the corners. The stages that were being talked up by Michael Matthews

were five and six. When you said it, I thought, into Monte Cassino? !

I'm just looking at that now and I can understand perhaps, but these

are bumpy stages and I wondered whether it was an error. There was

one area of the race which I thought would suit Ben Swift right down to

the ground. I imagine it would suit Michael Matthews as well. I think it

was something like stage seven, let me have a look. Yes, stage seven is

pretty lumpy all the way through. They start on a long climb. They

finish around 40 days to go. It is a long way for a team to control it.

They have to take opportunities when they can.

I think Orica GreenEdge and Team Sky might join forces on those days. The

next sprint stage which Mark Cavendish won he was riding very

hard. The only one that they dropped was Marcel Kittel whose team did a

great job trying to get him back on but unfortunately did not succeed.

In the end, there was a crash on the finishing straight and Mark

Cavendish triumphed at of his team-mate. Marcel Kittel famously

join that race, she picked up his -- he picked up his bike and slammed it

to the ground in distrust. -- in disgust. There was a bit of a PR

moment. He sorted it out himself without any help from the

manufacturer or the sponsor. The next day he tweeted a picture of

himself offering flowers to his beloved by saying they had to

impress jewellers relationship, but it is only love. And it was amazing,

he turned a PR disaster into an absolute triumph. He is good looking

as well! Apparently he has booked himself into a cheap whitening

clinic. -- teeth whitening. He is a near-perfect example of what every

man would like to look like and what every woman would like a man to look

like as well. He is a beast of a bloke, he speaks in P Gould --

impeccable English as well, which always helps. The pace has picked up

a little bit. I'm not quite sure who we are seeing there. Eurovision

seemed to stop everything last night. A lady or a gentleman with a

beard won it, I'm not sure which. But there you go. Speaking of

beards, there seemed to be a crop of them in the pelaton at the moment.

I'm always surprised when I see people with stubble, as there is a

focus on being streamlined. I'm not on TV so I can be lazy in the

mornings. I will have a shave tomorrow morning! BBC Two Northern

Ireland, a warm welcome to you watching in. We are here, tell your

friends. The big question is classes or no glasses. Looks like they are

going for it today. You do get a lot of water kick up in the eyes. In the

sprint you may see riders choosing to have the vision. You just have to

blink more. It can be painful when you get rain in your eyes,

especially at speed. Many people are asking what sort of

protection is offered by being in the pack. Dan was talking about it

earlier. If you want to test it out with resistance, when you are

driving in the car, or somebody else's driving and you are a

passenger, pick out the old road map and hang it out of the window, and

you will feel just how much the wind is affecting, and how strong it is,

and what a job the windscreen does in protecting you. It is the same

deal having all those bodies in front of you. It is a bit like the

windscreen. Don't do it when the Garda are around, although they are

a extremely friendly here. Most times when you stop and ask a

policeman, he points you in the right direction. Over here, they

start asking you questions! I had a five-minute conversation today about

the car I drive. The Belgian team, the latest to come toward the

front. The very experienced Alexandra Pataki, 40 years old,

getting a little bit too excited thereat the front. They are out

there protecting the interests of Rigoberto Uran, second overall last

year, with massive ambitions to equal or better that in this year's

race. There are the golden arches towards the left. It looks like the

cameraman is hungry. He pulls a wide view just so he can... Maybe he is

after free food! Just look at these people. You are all magnificent.

Northern and Southern Ireland. I am informed that contract

negotiations for riders are officially allowed to begin on July

the 1st, which makes sense, because the Who's Who of cycling will

descend on France, and indeed, Yorkshire, this year, throughout the

Tour de France, which takes place in July. It is like a rock star

welcome, and the riders love it. Mike Matthews yesterday got on the

podium, and it was almost like the end of a set. It was phenomenal. He

absolutely loved it. He spent time drinking in the moment. It has been

an extraordinarily warm welcome the Giro has had this year. Yes, it has

been great, and I think it always is when it starts outside the country.

I lasted the Giro d'Italia in 2010, and it started in the Netherlands. I

did the Tour de France that year as well. Very well received on both

occasions. In Denmark, it was exactly the same, but I think it has

superseded everything so far at least three days of here. Indeed.

Some lovely slow motion going on. That is road rash par excellence. It

looks like the plaster has slipped just a bit. There is no restriction

on holding onto a medical car, incidentally. Sometimes, I have to

wonder about some of the plaster requests. "I have a be staying. --

bee sting. 's it is amazing how many bee stings I got on mountains! No

restriction on holding onto the medical guy, but I suppose if you

are found out, you will be in trouble.

A small industrial town, this, apparently. The Boyne River around

here. Possibly, the less said about that, the better. 65.5 kilometres to

go. The cameraman's Kleenex is getting a good work-out today, as

you can see. It is a forward facing camera. If he gets a little bit

further forward, the rain will not hamper him too much. That was Nikko

Boem. Team badly and. . It looks like just a tower. Is that

a memorial, or just a remnant? Not quite sure. 64.8 to go. It is a

shame, actually, that we have been dogged by rain today, because their

arson beautiful scenes on the border between North and South. We were

little bit lost yesterday looking for fuel. We almost ran out. Yes, we

were on vapours. That would have been your fault. I told them to fill

an hour previously, but he decided to go on.

There was not much conversation as the miles to go before zero went

down below 25. That looks like a Napoleonic

defensive installation. I will find out for you in a few minutes. I have

dropped my notes. Hard to attack something like that by running up

the mound. If you were to tunnel in, and burn it down, the whole place

would collapse. Obviously, that has not happened here. This is why

miners were employed in medieval times to sack Cassells. What about

that?! We have run out of conversation. Paolini in his every

dynamic Hamlet at the frontier. Stage winner last year on the third

stage, going into the pink jersey, which he held onto for some time,

protecting his lead. Rodriguez, the Spaniard, just behind him. At the

start of the day, he lost a massive chunk of time. Far from ideal

situation for him. He goes to Italy, probably with one minute and 20

seconds or just over, deficit to some of his key rivals, including

Uran and Evans. That is not easy to make up. Blessing, there he is.

Lovely bloke, actually, and he has sort of crept up on us over the last

few years. I am always startled to find out how old the years. I always

think of him as Roesch the younger, -- Roche.

Yesterday, he was suffering with a knee injury. We hope that will not

get any worse, but it doesn't seem to affect him too much today. He is

in the wind for his team leader, detecting him and keeping them safe

towards the front, saving as much energy as possible.

These victories have brought a lot of popularity to cycling in

Australia. He came fifth in a World Cup mountain biking race as a

junior, and went on to huge things, winning the World Cup overall a few

times. I don't think he ever managed to win the world Mountain bike

championships, but he won the Road race Championships. 1998? 2009!

A fantastic mountain biking. He has a real personality all of his own,

Cadel Evans. Some people like it, others are mystified by it, but I

really like the man. He is one of my favourite riders, and has been great

for cycling. The way he won the Tour de France was amazing. Essentially,

no one was helping him out on the big mountain climbs. Just a super

solid rider. I don't know what he will end up doing, but we will see a

lot more of him, I am sure, in the future. If you could just get a bit

more chatty! Incidentally, Robbie McEwen has retired, and turning into

a great commentator. I listened to him on the tour down under at the

start of the year. Of course, a wealth of knowledge from, I think it

is safe to say, the best sprinter Australia has produced. Inspired

clearly by Mark Cavendish, who always said that Robbie McEwen was

his hero. Who did I see the other day saying the same thing? I think

it was Sam Bennett, the Irish rider, who is now a professional

with a team who unfortunately aren't here. He is a sprinter as well, and

he could have been in the top ten or even better on these first two

stages. No one is attempting to bunny hop over the roundabout, which

happens on occasion. Incidentally, thank you for all of your help with

Drogheda. I know now how to pronounce that. 42.5 kilometres to

go until the end. 60 kilometres left. That tells you we have about

an hour and a half. We said three minutes and 33 would be the gap, and

it is holding absolutely steady. Many of you have found is for the

first time on BBC Two Northern Ireland. It is nice for you to join

us. Likewise, to hear from you over in Canada, North America, even India

and the Asian Pacific rim. Can you get beyond Australia? Are we in the

Antarctic? It feels moderately cold today, speaking of which, but it has

been cheerful nonetheless. The Dutch champion here, a number of the

riders down. We have also got another one of the Carrow Road is.

What a bad time they have been having. That does not look good for

the Steiner rider. Working per Scarponi and our in the overall

classification. Is that Scarponi closest to us in the black? It is.

The former winner of this race, back in 2011, has come down. He is

straight back onto his spare bike, but he does not look too happy. I am

not surprised. Ferrari is here, incidentally, for lamb praise. Their

chosen sprinter today. At least he has plenty of team-mates around him.

The problem is, they have also fallen, so there has been a big bike

change. They have been thrown asunder. One of the Oracle riders,

perhaps two of them, there as well, it must have happened close to the

front of the bunch. We did not see exactly what happened there, but

everything is not looking too good. Agnoli as well there. A key

lieutenant governor between leaders and the climbs, and he is also not

looking happy. He is waiting for his spare bike to get going again.

Agnoli, he has got a bit of a face rash as well. They have been

damaging their visages. Not a hugely high pace, but we were chatting

about it. No one is really knocking it back.

Back and underway, but this adds to the discomfort, certainly today.

This is not a nice site. Know, and I mentioned yesterday, with these

opening stages of grand Tours, always very, very nervous. You have

the sprinters teamed up towards the front, the leaders and their teams

protecting them as well, and it simply does not all fits. It means

everyone crowds together to protect their position, and Italy when the

roads are wet, and it only takes a very small touch of wheels, and

there will be a domino effect. Ten or 20 riders can come down. We saw

it in the Tour de France 2012. Around 50 guys on the floor, and

some of them with very severe injuries, in fact.

With the rain capes and lack of numbers on display, it is a bit of a

lottery out there. But these guys are not happy with the cameras. They

just want to get on with their job. This is being a professional

cyclist. But a long way back for some of these fellows. Even though

there are 50 70 so kilometres remaining, -- 57 or so, this will be

a deficit to them, I am afraid. Moreno Moser, handed that

essentially by Peter Sehgal, who is not here. But he is a tough egg in

on the last. It is never going to be his day-to-day, but it is just not

what he wants. Certainly not this early in a grand tour, to pick up

bruises. There is a truce in the pelaton at the moment. Certainly if

the pink jersey goes down more often than not they will sit and wait

until they get back on before resuming the chase. The breakaway

may not have had too much of a chance before. Things looked to be

getting slightly better for them. That can make people more nervous,

if they have to go really fast to catch the breakaway riders. That is

again when crashes can start to happen. Let's keep our fingers

crossed for everybody. They are gently chugging along at the moment.

Taking the opportunity to have a feed on some of those gel bars. This

is moderately pleasant riding the sum of those guys. Some of them have

gripped where they shouldn't, and they will be feeling damp and dirty.

Not nice. A shame that Ferrari was caught out in this. I'm not 100%

sure it was him. 56.3, four minutes now and it really has knocked back,

nobody has the will to punish those who bad trouble. When sky first came

into the pelaton they inspired a lot of jealousy because of the funding

they had. They turned up in their Jaguars which did not help things.

It's very old though. What year is it? I call it a classic! But when

sky were in trouble they were actually being attacked earlier on.

They came onto the scene with a bang, there is no doubt about that.

They were advertising how much better their buses were then

everybody else's. And people thought, we've been cycled --

cycling for a long time. One man came up to me and said, if they

could reinvent water than they would? ! You can hear them talking

about the investment sky put into their team. Their bus was nicknamed

the death Star in a humorous moment. All the teams have pretty smart

looking buses these days. In our efforts to bring the

behind-the-scenes access, Gavin Andrews our reporter has been able

to have a sneak inside that famous Team Sky bus. The bikes are

state-of-the-art. Talk us through this. You're very welcome. We got

two of buses. Basically, they were designed primarily for rider

comfort. We tried to create a lot of space. We ripped everything out and

started from scratch. We wanted to replicate a business class lounge on

an aeroplane. A meeting room at the back, rider food and bars etc. So it

doubles up as a bit of a mouse large area, there are two sets of sliding

doors for a bit of privacy. -- a bit of a massage area. Two showers as

well. The floor was made lower so the tour guys can get in. And there

is space if one guy has an accident and he is covered in road rash,

somebody can get in and help him to rub down. Just a small kitchen

area. Very important copy machine which gets a lot of use. -- coffee

machine. Hydration drinks and yoghurt just to give them some food

after the race. They've all got their own spot? Yes, they've all got

their own individual seats. They were specially designed, a bit

narrower than an aeroplane seat but extremely comfortable. You can try

one out. They were about ?1000 each. They recline, they swivel because we

have meetings on here sometimes as well, so they can all face each

other. At the front, there is a big screen projector. Primarily we are

here to look after the riders. We need them to be in good shape, well

recovered with good morale. need them to be in good shape, well

atmosphere to work in. Have a seat, we'll kick back and watch a film,

what do you say? Sounds good to me. We remember the Orica GreenEdge bust

last year getting stuck under the arch. That reminded me a bit of our

bus ride down to Belfast last night. Yes, with the reclining seats and

the showers! Now, let's get back to the racing because they are still

going, five breakaway riders at the front. There is a rest day tomorrow,

there are no climes at all, so he has badgers eat for the next few

days now. -- he has that jersey. Four minutes behind is the main

peloton, including Michael Matthews in the pink jersey. There was a

suggestion he came down in that crash but that does not seem to have

happened. Let us return to the action and join Dan and Carlton

again. There is a double turn and then a gentle ramp climb to the

finish line. We're keeping our fingers crossed that everybody stays

safe. The sprinters at the moment are all intact. A couple have had a

spell but they are back and ready to race. With just over 50 kilometres

to go, today there will be fireworks at the end. A very good job out

front. Do you have a pic today? -- a pick. I think the pic is obvious. I

would like to go for Elia Viviani. I saw how well he sprinted in the tour

of Turkey. He got it slightly wrong yesterday, as did his team, I think.

They ran out of energy towards the end. Perhaps he just wanted to stay

safe at the end it sure he got into a good position using the least

amount of energy. I'm looking for somebody with a bit of an on-off

switch. We are looking for outsiders, by the way. Giacomo

Nizzolo was somebody I mentioned yesterday. His team is a young

outfit. I think maybe somebody who will do it on their own. Roberto

Ferrari was all on his lonesome yesterday, he finished fifth. If it

starts to get nasty, people like Ferrari can take a fat -- take a

bite. I'm going together NASA blarney. He is a kick boxer. -- I'm

going to go for Nacer Bouhanni. They are heading towards the coast now.

Then they will head inland and go south westwards, so that will be a

change in direction for the cause. The wind has not affected the race

too much so far. It is a westerly wind but it has been reasonably

protected, the road. The majority of the time, it looks to me like

they've had a tail wind. Whether that will change over the next few

kilometres - you can see the road opens up quite a bit towards the

coast and there will be more and more nervous people back in the

peloton and perhaps more crashes, you never know. Let's hope not. It

is a question of keeping hold of those rain capes, because you are

going to need them again and again. There is a lot of warm weather gear

as well. Rather strangely, as it warms up, it can feel rather

pleasant. You can see the poly falls over the ground, Polly Keen sheeting

with rice starch worked into it. -- polytheme sheeting. It biodegrade

and the plans can grow through it. So it offers a greenhouse effect for

the plans, gives it a bit of protection, then it rots away and

the plant grows. Magnificent. I don't know how I know that. It was

invented in Israel. A bit of a warning, the riders really do look

after each other throughout little sections where there is road

furniture. It is great to see the collective spirit within the

peloton. Riders feel that they look after everybody, they know that you

don't read it want anybody to ball, even if it is your worst enemy.

Former winner of this race suffering from a puncture there. He will be

helped back on by team-mates I'm sure. I don't think the wheel is

quite straight. I don't know if he got a bit of a bribe. -- a rub. It

is amazing how much you can read with just a dumb rub on the tire.

Yes, if it is wet they will just let out a bit of air just to give them a

bit more grip. I have seen a whole bike changes when the weather

changes dramatically. Especially principal riders who have an

alternative. They will have two bikes set up exactly the same.

Everybody seems to have their favourite even if they are deemed to

be exactly the same. It's amazing when you spend so long on a bike how

used you get to it. The mechanics and professional teams have some

great instruments to make sure bikes are exactly the same, but it is a

prize in, they can just feel slightly different. -- it is

surprising. You saw there a perfect example of the depression you get

with a 90 degrees corner. Not really comfortable to be more than two or

three wide. See you get this stretching effect of the peloton. As

you come into town, if you have a number of turns, that effect is

multiplied and you have a difficult chicane to deal with at the end.

That is going to stretch them out with three and 50 metres to go. --

350 metres to go. It is a day where you will have to fight for a good

position with two or three kilometres to go and then try and

hold it. In some ways, it can mean the battle for position happens

earlier and if you are not in the right position you have no chance of

doing anything in that last kilometre if you are outside the top

70. They will all know that, they will have done their research. There

is very detailed information given out about the ups and downs, the

twists and turns. And most teams will also use modern technology,

Google Earth, to look at the road. Team Sky will have a preview on

their projector. So most riders will have a good idea of what faces them

towards the end of the day. Mark Cavendish always wanted to be as

well prepared as possible. He does a lot of research to find out which

side of the road he needs to be on. Because it doesn't matter how much

research you do online, there's nothing like seeing it with your own

eyes. Garibaldi, essentially, was a general, and was responsible for the

unification of Italy, bringing all the provinces together. There were

city states in that time of the world as well, and they were all

brought together. Some would say it is still very much a divided

country, with the Northern league and the rest of it, and it does feel

very different. I guess you could say that not only for Great Britain

but for the island of Ireland as well. But differences are part of

life. Garibaldi, you might actually see a bearded gentleman walking

around, who is the sort of mascot of the race. We call the guy the

Garibaldi, because it is the whole of Italy unified. This chap pretends

to be Garibaldi. His name is that Gary and he is not Bol! He has a

silver beard, and wears a red pillbox hat. If you see him, go and

say buno giorno! Three minutes and 15, and arms going

up. Assistance required. There you go, shoe cover coming off. It is

getting to the serious end of the day, and riders will take a bit more

discomfort in exchange for likeness. Yes, they are all getting prepared

now for the crunch point of this race, where things speed up and get

more nervous. It might not be that they are particularly warm at this

point, or that the conditions have improved, but they will start to

strip off, and team leaders might give rain capes to their helpers, or

domestiques, to take back to the car. It means when they get hotter,

they are prepared, and more aerodynamic, particularly for the

sprinters, of which we have one on our screens now. Mike Matthews,

wearer of the pink jersey. He has got ripped shorts! We will see how

much that affect him today. To be honest, when the adrenaline kicks

in... One thing that is rather silly, though, is to have a flapping

rain cape. I did do it up or take it off. We are talking about

aerodynamics here, and he is just wasting wattage. Yes, that is

something that our colleague, a former professional rider,

absolutely hates. Very into aerodynamics, and he has done a lot

of testing in the wind tunnel with the British track squad to see how

much difference it can make. It is a significant amount. You can't really

feel the difference going along, but who knows when you can save five or

ten seconds through a stage? That makes a lot of difference through

all the stages. Somebody asked earlier how much difference it makes

to be on somebody's wheel. I think it is about 30%. Much more than that

in a big peloton. But it is also not great to be right at the back. I

can't quite remember the science now. If you can remember, get in

touch and tell me. I'm not sure exactly what it is, but in the

research with team pursuit of four riders going round a track, the

person in second has an advantage, the person in third has the most,

and the person and forth slightly less. As the wind billows behind

you, it actually has a factor on the man at the back. As they come

through, lots of checks. Just to make sure everyone is in a safe

place. I have forgotten what I was going to

say now! A terrible picture has entered my mind. We will swiftly

move on. The beach is here. Terrific seafood, incidentally, in this part

of the world. You will never taste better salmon than around here. Our

friends in Scotland will probably disagree, but it is amazing.

We are in Skerries, and it looks like a river estuary. Very shallow,

and some beached boats as well. A coastal town. These information

schedules are not offering us much! We can see it is on the coast. Three

minutes and three. Into the woodland area, which is nasty. They can get

quite skitter re-, and the roads can be quite greasy. When the leaves

fall, some of them rot on the road at this time of year, and it can get

very slippery. You can also get a lot of micro-sought from diesel

exhausts that finds itself on the road, and that is not washed away.

-- soot. They all skipped over that speed bump, which has not been

ground down. Whistles and penance for the safety folk. They were

warned about it. A big shout for the marshals, who have done a fantastic

job in Northern Ireland will stop they called in volunteers and use

them very wisely. STUDIO: indeed, thousands of

volunteers helping out here. It is a global sport, but no more so than

for the local riders. We have Dan Martin, who crashed out on the take

their word time trial, and Nico Roshan. His team-mate Chris Jensen

was actually born in Ireland as well, although he now represents

Denmark. Gavin caught up with his dad. You have come all the way from

Denmark. Tellers about the special connection

your son has been Ireland. Well, he was born here in 1989. The

connection is really strong. Elementary and he is officially one

of ours! He would like to think so, but with Danish parents, he is a

little bit torn between his loyalties to Denmark and Ireland.

But having lived here for 16 years before we moved back to Denmark, he

has every right to be a bit confused! How much has the enjoy the

experience? Enormously. I have never seen him so nervous as he was on the

starting line in Belfast, and he was lapping it up, and once the team

time trial was over, which went well for him and the team, he was able to

relax, and he is so delighted to be doing a grand tour and especially

one in Ireland. It is amazing. And in great company, with Nicholas

Roach. Yes, his Irish team-mate. They do argue about who is the most

Irish! I would have thought Chris would be a little bit at a

disadvantage, because Nicholas has at least one Irish parent, but Chris

counters by saying he was born in Ireland, and if that evens it out,

he claims to deliver the killer punch by saying he speaks English

with an Irish accent, hinting that Nicholas maybe has a bit of a French

accent to his English. But that is just friendly banter. Chris works

for Nicholas, and his role is as a helper, a domestique, as we say. It

is not particularly glamorous, but he loves it. He is living out his

dream. The fact he helps Nicholas, giving him his bike if he has a

crash, or the waiting for him if he ever delay on the road, or if the

peloton is split, that is his job, and he is enjoying that. He hopes

one day that in some of the smaller races, maybe he will be the captain,

and Nicholas will work for him. This must be a very special day for you,

a very proud dad. Very much so. We owe Ireland an enormous amount,

having lived here for 16 years and enjoyed every moment of it. I don't

think Chris would raise a bicycle and it was not for Ireland, because

the Wicklow Mountains, the many mountain bike races we did in the

north and the fact that he was part of the Irish team for the youth

Olympics in 2005. A not particularly strong member of that team, but he

sneaked into it. That gave him the boost and gave him the hope that

even in Denmark, where the competition is higher, a higher

level over on the continent, but he felt that with his Irish background,

and the ruggedness, if you can go up the Wicklow Mountains with the wind

in your face and tarmac under your wheels, you can really hack it

anywhere. So Ireland has been so important for us. Being back is

quite emotional for him and for his mother, and for me as well, of

course. Just around 40 kilometres. It will

get an awful lot quicker and an awful lot more dangerous. It is

always getting quicker and quicker. You can see problems with the

barriers here at the finish line. The wind coming in and pushing them

over. They have the sponsors' logos strapped to the side, and they will

have to make sure that does not happen when the riders coming. In

some places, they have been taken off. I don't know if that is because

they had been blown over. But it gives you an idea of how windy it is

at the finish. Very much so. The organisers will have to take great

care, and indeed, the security staff will stop a might have to have

someone hold onto it. We will see. Let's hope they stay safe. Together

taking a little feed. Thinking about internal, who probably started this

race as an out and out favourite, and we haven't had a test for the

climbers so far. We have a leader of the King of the Mountains

competition, and it is Mr Gillingham D. He has taken both of

bottles and gels being handed out, and they are taking their time,

making they are taking them properly. Time for a couple more

questions before we get into the real back end of this race. Mark

Moore had asked what the top speed riders might get up to is over the

course of the three weeks. A Sprint like today, riders can get it to 70

miles an hour in the right conditions. I don't think they will

get there today. A slight headwind finish, but still close to 60, if

not over. On the mountains, it very much depends on the descent.

Technically, if there are a lot of corners, you cannot reach a

high-speed, although it might be up to 80. I think I got my highest ever

speed on a bike in the first zero I did. -- versus Giro d'Italia I did.

I got 126 kilometres an hour. Not exactly sure what that is in miles

per hour, but very fast. That sounds scary! You have to have confidence

not only in your bike handling skills, but in your bike. I have to

say, I can't remember exactly what speed it was, but there is a certain

speed where you just start to think, I hope the mechanic did the

bolts up! My fastest descent ever was in Sheffield. When I hit the

breaks, the locks broke, and I went break free.

To film a helicopter, you need a helicopter. It is a rule of the

movies. At least you definitely now know we have two helicopters. Rain

clouds are rolling in, giving is a good old soaking, but the sun has

joined as yet again at the end of the day. This is stage three of the

Giro d'Italia, finishing in Dublin, and look at the wind. It is going to

be massive. Yes, the first point at which I have seen wind playing a

part. You can see the flags in the background there, blowing across the

road from the left-hand side of the screen as we look at it, which is

why we see these riders just fanning across the road. The Colombian

champion at the front, and behind him and to the left, Dockx. Just

trying to get protection from the wing. Whether anyone in the peloton

will start riding high behind, I am not sure, that they will have to

write reasonably hard to close this gap down. It is still close to three

minutes, so they will have to ride at a reasonable speed from here to

the finish to make sure they catch this breakaway. Do your jersey up!

He does exactly that. He was trying to do it before. That's when I first

noticed, the wind caught his front wheel and threw him off, not enough

to cause him to crash, but that was the first indication I got that

there was a lots of wind out there. When we look at these little rooster

tail is being kicked up of the wheels, it even stings the face,

when that kind of level of water is being thrown up. 36.5 kilometres to

go, and a bit of and acceleration here. They have had a bit of a

crash, if you crashes, where they have waited for riders. What that

has done is, it has allowed those in the breakaway to hold station. We

told you yesterday about the general rule about a breakaway. Avellino

here, trying to pace himself. Do your rain jersey up, and you will go

quicker! He is a sprinter, might well be there towards the end. He

was ninth yesterday. A general rule, as I just said, two minutes and 43,

it is about one minute per ten kilometres. That could be closed

down. If that gap holds, and we get to around about 15 or 18 to go, they

might be back on dry roads. Very different weathering conditions

between the breakaway compared to the peloton, where the rain is

really coming down hard. There must only be two kilometres between the

two of them but it is making a surprising difference. There will

only be three riders comfortable in that bend. Some of the team cars

have TV and they are probably listening to exactly what we are

saying now. Sometimes we tease them! A mixed servers as well, there are a

few repairs going on that were forgotten in the build-up. This is a

high paced babe. -- day. It is amazing how much energy you can save

if you use the slipstream. Yes, sometimes it is impossible to get

back to the peloton if you cannot use the slipstream effect behind the

cars. There is the experienced duo at the front. Doing a fantastic job

just in case anything happens in the wind. Nairo Quintana did not want it

to be too windy but he is doing a great job. Oh! We neared our cabin.

They have stacked up behind. This could well be big one. -- we knew it

would happen. Brett Lancaster is there. This is a disaster for the

Australian squad. Not looking particularly good. Oh, my goodness.

That is Cameron Meyer on the floor. He has gone completely pale and I'm

not surprised. Just wondering if he is OK. Has he taken a crack on the

jaw? Let's have a look, look just to the left of your screen. It is just

out of shot, you will see the camera catch up with it right now.

Goodness. It looks like team-mates may well have got involved. One of

the sky riders is also down. It is hard to tell from the overhead

shots. Unfortunately, one of the riders had already been involved in

a crash at the intermediate sprint. He is just getting back onto his

bike, as is Cameron Meyer. He will try to re-game contact with the

peloton. Not going to be an easy task, they haven't let up this time

and they can't afford to do so. It will be a difficult contact for

those guys who crashed to get back to the peloton. They have a big

problem, because they have more team principals up the road there will be

protected and that gap cannot be allowed to get out. We told you how

clever BMC are. They knew there was a technical area coming up and they

completely avoided that problem. You can see groups trying to chase back

on here. But they are still off the back of the peloton. It takes teams

are well to know exactly who has been left behind. There will be

allsorts of communications going on to make sure the team leaders are

OK. I think you are right. Carleton Evans is widely experienced and he

knows where he needs to be. You widely reduce your chances if you

stay up there in that top 20. Plenty of rain protection has been handed

out to the crowd. I'm looking out at the moment and there is no way to

walk by on the paving. It is absolutely rammed. They will get one

hell of a welcome south of the border, as they have had north on

the two stages. Heading down to Dublin, just over 180 kilometres for

them to deal with today. 31.8 of them left. You are looking at the

breakaway riders. They have had more road space to play with, so they

have stayed safe. Yes, it is very calm up there compared to further

behind. They are nervous. You can see the group behind is just about

making contact with the peloton. We don't have identification of the

members of that group but it looks like they will make it back to the

peloton. That will have taken some energy out of them. Although there

has been a gentle easing off the pace, I think the deed is starting

to play a part for those in the breakaway as well. -- I think

fatigue. 31.1 kilometres to go. Back on his bike, yesterday they were

working for Ben Swift. The drag out the finish might favour him a bit

more than yesterday. Let's hope the Norwegian is doing OK. It will give

him a big rat although. Even if you have not broken anything, it affects

the musculature and he will have had to fight to get back on. That said,

he has let it be known he is looking for an exit from sky. It may well be

hampering Ben 's chances as well. We will see how ragged the build-up to

the home stretch will be. These crashes have affected a lot of

people. Here is the other Irish rider in the race that people forget

about. He's got a plethora of raincoats. He as to be careful that

he doesn't get snagged! He has won in his mouth! -- he has one. You can

find them on eBay later. If it is wet tomorrow they will be forced to

wear Orica GreenEdge advertising. There is a good relationship between

that team and Sky. Some of the movies that they put up features Sky

riders as well. So it is a nice, friendly rivalry and they help each

other out. These guys are in sunshine. A little bit more pressure

in the tyres is wanted at this point, I would think. Not much they

can do about that. Although those high tubes do leak air so where the

optimal pressure is as low as 4.5 bars, they will actually start with

more than that so that they get to the crunch point at the right time.

They usually called for the last drink about 30 kilometres from the

line. Just under 30 kilometres to go from

the finish, the breakaway has just over one minute on the peloton but

that is likely to come back together and we are predicting a strained

finish. All eyes will be on yesterday 's stage winner and the

birthday boy Marcel Kittel. Gavin caught up with him last night after

his stage win. How special is this to you? I was looking forward to

today. I wanted to get a win and I was very excited before the start.

Now I am super proud. Everyone was nervous and wanted to be in front.

No team could really make a lead, including our own team. So we had to

fight for position. And it was about coming first around the last corner.

Tomorrow you will be the favourite again. I think so, but after today,

there is some pressure gone. We can look forward to tomorrow. Certainly

looking forward to seeing the race arrived here in Dublin. It could be

chaotic in that sprint finish. Who better to tell us what it is like

than the men involved? 800 metres, we are nearly at the big turn! The

adrenaline is forlorn. It is pretty exciting. -- is full-on. Every team

has a view riders working to put their printer -- best sprinter into

the ideal position. The guys at the front go to the max until they are

entirely empty and then they swing off. Actually you need for eyes to

check everything. It is a battle. Then you get a lot of shoulders and

head butts. It's not a nice place to be. In the end, it is all about

timing. You have to concentrate and be relaxed enough to follow your

plan. You can sense the adrenaline as you get closer and closer. And it

kind of goes into slow motion almost. And then it just erupts.

If you think about your own personal safety, you cannot sprint. You need

to rely on your team-mates and completely trust everybody. When a

spring goes wrong, it always goes horribly wrong. I know people

prepare a lot for these sprints. They will know what to expect. I

should just say the noise behind us is the crowd cheering on the riders.

You will have seen the chicane. They will have videos of these parts of

the race. They will have viewed it this morning. They won't know about

the wet conditions, or about the wind. We've seen sprinters in

trouble today, so it is very unpredictable. We understand Mike

Matthews did go down briefly but he is back on his bike and looking

comfortable. Cameron Meyer went down very happily. Yes, and his team-mate

did as well. That will certainly affect the Orica GreenEdge team.

These guys are so hardy, often doing running repairs as they go. When

they get back to their team bus as tonight, that is where the real

helpful comment. Yes, you want to get back on your bike as soon as

possible. As long as you take, the peloton is getting away. You have to

get back on your bike and cope with any injuries you have picked up will

stop you often see riders getting back on their bike and then pulling

out of the race later with something like a broken collarbone or even a

broken pelvis that is masked by the adrenaline. The gap is plummeting

now, 46 or 47 seconds. The breakaway have been away most of the day, the

five riders, including the leader, but the rest of the peloton is just

coming along. That will be controlled now by the sprint teams

as they try and bring it back together. Yes, Shimano and or occur

have clearly had a bit of a day, Orica GreenEdge, and they are trying

to catch the break too soon. They don't want the race back together

before they get into the outskirts of Dublin. They want to make sure

there is no opportunity for anyone else to attack before the finish.

Della Machar lets get back to the commentary now to bring this race

today to a climax. When it comes to the mountains, they

can make up ground, and they do want to lose any of those favoured guys

here. They carried the top numbers. Even though our defending champion

is going to do the Tour de France this year, they still have Scarponi

and Fabio Aru, and Michael LAMDA is there as in doubt climbers, and

indeed GC specialist. So they have a decent team with them, but the time

trialling expert amongst this team... This year, there is a

mountain time trial as well, just to test everybody out. That will be a

challenge. Certainly will. For the GC riders, it is more to their

favour than a flat time trial, I guess. I am trying to think

quickly, Evans is probably the best flat time trialist of the GC riders.

Kent Arnault, himself, has won some big time trials on some big races.

In the Basque country, he won overall by winning the last time

trial. Nonetheless, that means he is pretty accomplished against the

clock. Tony can have his off days when he gets a bit salty. I was

going to say his lip starts trembling, but if that starts

happening, there could be an earthquake! 22.7 kilometres to go.

48 seconds, and I think they have done the job now. Just in case there

are any more knocks, I think they wanted to close that gap right down

so they can manage the situation. I think it is...

They have also had cars and on the deck earlier. So they're too quick

men have had issues. There is appear to be mechanical. Let's have a look.

Sailing out. Ben Swift yesterday finished in

seventh place in a mixed sprint. Could do better today, because that

uphill RAM as well, . Thank you for all of your kind comments on

Twitter. It has been a joy to hear from you today. It has not been a

dramatic stage necessarily, but certainly a long one. Tomorrow is a

rest day, don't forget, so a little hiatus to build up the drama yet

again. And then on stage four, another one for this printer is, so

I hope you stay with us throughout the entire Giro d'Italia, especially

those fans in Northern Ireland and indeed the Republic of Ireland, who

have now found the sport and fallen in love with it as an island in its

entirety. Quite remarkable, and lovely to see. We are glad you have

been along for the right, so thank you for that. Here they come. They

will be making a turn fairly shortly down, and it will be destination

Dublin. Let's talk about this run, shall we? At this point in time, I

believe they are heading back towards the coast. A feud twists and

turns before they finally had South West into Dublin. We will explain

the technical running a little later on. The pink jersey from last

year's race helping Ben Swift to get back towards the peloton, so he is

doing a good job for his team-mate. No word yet as to whether Hagen

managed to get back on. He is here somewhere, but they have not spotted

him yet. Yes, a difficult day, especially when you have do

essentially retrieve yourself . Nicolas Roche does not want to go

the same way as Dan Martin. There is a possibility that someone might

have a big issue late on. It is technical in the running, and we are

approaching the 20 kilometre mark. All the main GC boys are very

conscious about being out front. I suppose if you don't do your

research, just watch BMC and follow what they do. They have an amazing

quick turn of speed, and can guide their principal rider, to the right

place at the right time. In the right place right now are a

breakaway group of fried riders -- five riders. 20 kilometres to go,

including Maarten Tjallingii, the man who wears that leaders jersey,

albeit in the King of the Mountains competition. The other jerseys have

had their issues today, although Marcel Kittel seems to have avoided

the problems that have dogged some others. Mike Matthews is wearing the

overall general classification pink jersey, the one that everyone wants,

and he has taken a tumble today. He is not amongst the fast men we are

expecting to feature. Boasson Hagen of Team Sky has taken a tumble as

well. Plenty of road rash to be dealt with tonight, but I think they

will forget about that now as the adrenaline kicks in. 51 seconds now,

the gap between these men in the break and the pack, with just 19.3

to go. Soon we will make the turn towards the city of Dublin, where

our finish line awaits. For those who have just joined us, a

nasty chicane year with 350 metres to go, a left followed by a right

very quickly afterwards. That is what happens in chicanes! And before

that, within one kilometre to go, they go over the Liffey. To

left-hand turns, and a right-hand turn. So it is technical, it is a

case of being in a good position some way from the finish, and I'm

sure Marcel Kittel on his birthday will be hoping that his team-mates

can deliver him to win number two. Average speed has risen to 41

kilometres an hour, so the automatic speed indicator at the side of the

road, part of a traffic calming plan, I think, indicates. Not quite

sure what was going on there. It looked like indigestion! 18.3

kilometres to go. 49 seconds is the gap. The crowds have been

immaculate. We do, of course, tease them, but that is the great

friendship in mind. Yes, it is to reflect. Everybody seems to be wants

to be part of this great race. It is great to see. Everyone also wants to

be part of the safety area, which is out front. Dan, you are having a

brief moment to look out of the commentary position, as we both are.

You can't see anything other than people's head. It is remarkable.

Yes, I was looking to see the road conditions, but it is incredible,

hard to even walk through. I would say it is beyond ten deep in

places. Incredible support for the last three days. A big thank you to

the fans here in Ireland, locals and people that have come from further

afield, but also to the volunteers who have done such a fantastic job

the last three days, and before that, it has really been a huge

pleasure for us to visit, a huge pleasure for the riders, and I'm

sure the organisers are extremely pleased with the way it has gone.

This is the phoney war. The calm before the storm. They know this is

technical, so they are all strategising at the moment. They

have done the job is far of the break is concerned. 45 seconds. I

bet that chillingly goes for it again. He did yesterday, and had a

bit of a late turn of speed. They are all getting into their colour

blocks, as you can see. The teams are coming together in formation for

this big assault. Through Portmarnock, and then making the

turn towards Dublin. It is a little wiggly course, and then we finish

just beside of Trinity University, a beautiful part of town,

incidentally. Lots of Georgian buildings, tall and elegant, as they

are. So are the locals! 16.9 kilometres to go. 42 seconds is the

gap, and it looks like plenty of furniture also giving them the kick

up the backside at that point. If nothing else, that will wake them

up. How will Marcel Kittel do, and indeed, his boys from Canada? And is

looking at Al Timmer at the moment. Here he is. Part of a very well

marshalled team. Not the a team as far as lead out our concern for

Marcel Kittel, but he has so much power to deliver, that he can. Yes,

he is so powerful. Over the last 12 months in particular. I remember

riding against him for the first time, I think for years ago, and my

team-mate at the time said, watch out for this man. The same with John

Deighton, who has gone on to great things, but Kittel was already fat

then, and he has got faster since then. He is supremely powerful and

has put the dominant sprinter from the last ten years, Mark Cavendish,

in his place a couple of times in the last two years. Cavendish,

arguably the best sprinter of all time, but certainly the best

sprinter of his generation. Tinkoff-Saxo coming to the front

now, and we have seen them do this in the past. Look already at the

effect that is having on the rest of the bunch. They knew where the wind

was coming from round the corner. It has already strung out. Doesn't take

too long with pressure like this to start opening up between riders.

Absolutely streaming, there are ways in the wind, you can be sure.

Gullies as well taking the water away from the road. Not much

standing water, considering the amount of rain we have had. Ken L

Evans, BMC, the wise old dog hears, calling for his boys to put in some

power. He is playing the long game and doing a good job. Evans in third

place. Wheels Alessandro Petacchi. Mike Matthews, a couple of

team-mates around him, they are trying to bring him up to make sure

he is protected and that the very front. Daniel Oss is on the very

front, with Evans two behind him, so we have some very experienced guys

up towards the front. Whether or not they will have enough strength to

split things completely, I am not sure, but they are doing a great job

of keeping their leader safe and making sure he is not behind any

splits. A nasty little break around this roundabout, with 15 kilometres

to go for the pack. They are 26 seconds in arrears of the five

breakaway riders, who have already started checking over their

shoulders. Here we go. I don't know where they get these outfits from!

He nearly came a cropper! He did the job, though. Also doing the job is

chillingly. He will be lighter, and it might be more than just spending

a penny. 14.4 kilometres to go, 19 seconds.

It is BMC, . Here comes Harare, amongst the lamprey boys. He will

have to do it on his own yet again, but he is capable of doing so. 14.1.

For me, Viviani, we know Kittel is the out and out favourite. We are

trying to look beyond him. But also don't count out Francesco Kiki in

what looks like the laundry accidents. Bright yellow. It is

bright pink that is the leader's jersey in the Giro d'Italia, and

Stephen Roche, in a decent addition, staying safe. It is

starting to open up in the middle-of-the-road.

More street furniture, unguarded. Somebody blew a whistle, and thank

goodness the riders are working for each other with 13 to go. The first

we have seen of Trek Factory Racing coming up to the front, I think on

behalf of Kittel, although it should be another wearing that. Things so

nervous here in the peloton at the moment, from the crosswinds to the

corners to the street furniture, everybody wants to be towards the

front, and so far, they have done a great job. Less than 13 kilometres

to go before we see the big sprinter teams coming back up, and that will

be Callan del and Jane Shimano primarily, with others trying to get

into the mix. Me outside pick yesterday made the podium. If they

had got the running better sorted out, it was a young leader, maybe he

could have gone that extra step. They are mobbing the road at the

moment, and there will be a hiatus once these boys are caught. I don't

think Maarten Tjallingii will go over it again. That is usually when

he goes to the back of a breakaway group, and then attacks late on.

Somebody will have a go just to do it for the sponsors. A late one. The

sprinter there has had a problem. Believe it or not, I don't think you

will find it too hard to get back to the peloton. There is a headwind,

which is why the peloton is spread across the road. The breakaway has

almost extended its lead. No chance of anything splitting up, but for

the second day running, he is having problems. It is a shame, he was one

of my outside picks for the day. He looks very concerned, which I think

means he is taking today seriously. So watch out for him. Because of

this, everybody is wanting to keep it together as it is at the moment.

No declared gap between these five breakaways and the pack mobbing the

road. That is a hell of the site. Everyone is quite happy to be at the

front of that group. The pace has gone out with the danger of the wind

direction but it won't be long before the spring teas -- the sprint

teams come up. It seems like the strap is broken, said the mechanic

having to tape his shoe tight. It is very important, it makes a

difference to the amount of power you can put into the pedals. The

breakaway is about to be swept up, and can I just apologised to some of

our viewers. The picture on the satellite is breaking up. All source

of weather conditions, that is the name of the game when you are

covering a big sport event like this. But apologies for the less

than pristine picture and we hope things will be perfect as we come to

the finish. Showing off the blue jersey on the left there. They are

down to four, the Colombian rider has just left. As soon as the

sprinter teams get themselves in good order, they will be ready to

go. Just about ten kilometres to go now. The gap has expanded slightly,

but this is just make sure all the personnel are where they should be

for each the teams. It will hover at around 20 seconds until one of the

sprint teams comes to the front. They are literally just there to

keep their teams in the right position. For the sprinters teams it

does, they want to have a chance of their leader crossing the line in

the first position. And birthday boy Marcel Kittel will be looking to

double up. In order to do that, they need to put somebody at the front.

They won't be too worried, they will want to save as much as possible for

this final lead up. It will be interesting to see who takes it up

first. It does not really get technical until round about five

kilometres to go. Then there are number of corners towards the

finish. There will be a left-hand turn, then a snaking run before a 90

degrees left-hander over the river. Then there is a sequence of turns

all culminating with the run. Left over the bridge, left again and then

right, and then all hell breaks loose. We are still worried about

that chicane which we injured 50 metres to go. 11 seconds is begat,

it is virtually nothing. The breakaway knows it is over, it is

the pack behind them sorting themselves out. They know that is

the business end of the day. We know it is highly technical. We have

everyone stays safe. Everyone is happy to be in their sprint trains

right now. Surprised to see one of these breakaway riders doing a last

ditch attack. As someone pointed out on Twitter, there is a prize every

day for the most aggressive rider, which will go to the person in the

breakaway who is out the front for the longest. So we might well see

him up at the podium at the end of the day. Away he goes! We believe he

is going for the combat award. Nobody will be overly concerned

about this. He will win some beer money for his team. I don't believe

anybody else wants to go for this. They will just go over to the

right-hand side of the road, everybody knows they are there and

they will be gently reabsorbed. So he decides to help himself to an

award, maybe. We'll see. So here's alone, but take no notice. Eight

kilometres to go. Look at those beautiful lines of colour. A wide

road has opened up an opportunity for teams to marshal themselves into

their preferred running order. It is not an easy thing to do to stay in

one line as a team. Particularly through corners. This wide road is

allowing almost the entire peloton to get towards the front. But it

will not be long before we get towards some corners and some

narrower roads. Judgement is crucial. Things can really go astray

if you judge it wrong. Skype team have got themselves into a decent

place. It was a 2-pronged attack which opened up the sent. -- opened

up the space. Just look at the way Giant-Shimano are moving. And the

king among them is Marcel Kittel. A lovely reverse view at the moment.

You can see those guys who'd done their job today, they are not part

of the sprint. Seven kilometres to go. It is about the sprinters.

Everyone for now is reasonably happy. They will cat and mouse

there's almost all the way to the line, it looks like. It is just the

nature of the wind at the moment which is making it look this calm.

The headwind means it is not strung out. We are seeing sprinters coming

up. Then Swift is on the wheel on the right-hand side of our screens.

Let's just hope the wind does not cast. Dan Lloyd is standing on his

feet and having a look as they come towards the absolute barrier. That

is not what you want. Back wheel is changed. If this speed suddenly

picks up he is going to need help to get back. That is a bad time for

this to happen. He will try his best to get back on. There is a team-mate

who will help him get there. He will offer up some wind resistance. Six

kilometres to go. 5.9 kilometres. This is where timing becomes crucial

because they are just about to come up to a left-hand turn. There will

be a mini sprint to get into that one first. After that, there is a

long right-hand bend. This is quite an important time for all the

sprinters to get themselves into the right place. But easier said than

done. You can see the red jersey of Marcel Kittel over on one side of

the road. Look at this, 5.2 kilometres to go. They are only

about four wide. They all want a part of the road. Three of the

Cannondale riders up towards the front. You can see the fact that

back corner had on the peloton. These riders have had the advantage

of dry roads for the last ten kilometres, but there are patches of

wet on this last stretch and that could cause chaos. This is that

snaking road I was telling you about. There was a big fight for

Marcel Kittel to get back in good order. He has managed to do that.

But he is second from last in his own line because he has a wing man

behind him protecting his back wheel. He is an enormous presence

out there. 4.4 to go as they make this big turn. It is 90 degrees.

They will head along the riverside and take a left-hander to cross

over. There is a lot to deal with. Not a surprise to see Cannondale and

Giant-Shimano up at the front. Alessandro Petacchi, he has won

quite a few stages over his career. He said he is not sprinting because

he is protecting the interests of Rigoberto Uran. A lot of green, they

have lime green. Tyler Farrar rah is mixed in with the largely black

races on the left-hand side of your screen. In nasty turn out one, that

was well marshalled by Cannondale and Giant-Shimano. 3.2 to go.

Perfect positioning for Marcel Kittel and Elia Viviani. But Marcel

Kittel is down to two team-mates, which is not ideal. You can see two

white jerseys. Elia Viviani still has five guys left to work for him.

Marcel Kittel looks sort of meerkat like, sitting upright trying to get

good vision. Alessandro Petacchi says he is not going to race but we

don't believe him. We think he is going to have a go. They will take a

left-hand turn shortly. They are all looking at each other, everybody is

holding something back because they know they will need all their power

in Alaska three re-enter 50 metres. -- in the last 350 metres. Still

five guys in front of Elia Viviani. Three guys now Marcel Kittel. I

think they might have gone just slightly too early, but of course,

they want to get this double left-hander with just over one

kilometre to go at the front. David Abilene open estate yesterday, also

in the mix for the Mondale in the brown and white. He is a big man as

well, he can go well. 1.9 kilometres to go. The introduction to the last

here, we're over the Liffey, over the bridge. We are going to make the

double turn, and then the chicane with 350 metres to go. Yes,

literally 500 metres now till the left-hand turn. The leader of Team

Sky on the left-hand side of the road there. Ben Swift is the last

man in the group of them. Boasson Hagen ahead of him, and Chris

Sutton, the Australian rider. Strong lead out train for Team Sky dear.

Change of pace completely, and joining the party is Francis Tisza.

They have kicked the door open and invited themselves, and they have

said he was a prize fighter. He is in exactly the right position right

now. Marcel Kittel may have run out of team-mates here. It is a crucial

turn, this. You have to be in the right place. Look at the

compression! For coming in, too wide coming out, and Cannondale have

mastered this as they go over the Liffey. A double turn, and that must

have heard some. They needed all the team-mates they can get. This bodes

well for Viviani with one kilometre to go. Kittel in about 15 position,

but that does not seem to hold them back in previous stages. A real

narrowing here as well, but that should not affect it too much. The

speed of Cannondale. Has Kittel got himself too far behind on this

race? I think he has. You can see the jersey, news about 15. Hagen

nearly lost it there. Alan they are all looking. They are all trying to

find a way through. And team Columbia here, to riders here. We

will see how they pan out. They are running out of road! They are

running out of luck, some of them as well. Here is Barack, so is Viviani!

Look at this! This is the chicane we have been worried about. Kittel 's

suddenly has joined in! That he is in the red jersey. They are all

having a look. And Boasson Hagen, is he going to go this way! They

awaiting the Ben Swift. There goes Barack. Where is Bali? Nowhere to be

seen! Here it comes! Here comes Kittel! Oh, he takes it on the line!

Out of absolutely nowhere, like a bolt of lightning, he delivers! What

a guy! Unbelievable racing. A turn of pace.

He had nobody with him, he had to do it on his own. He has all the

credentials a super sprinter of all time stop he nailed that. The most

difficult circumstances. Just look what it has taken out of him. Marcel

Kittel. We salute you! He is going to take his breath, and

so are we. That was brilliant. You can't take it away from somebody

like Marcel Kittel. He had a whole swarm of hornets all around him.

Some very high quality out there. Goodness me. We have had our fun

today. I hope you have as well. That is a piece of action that will live

long. Kittel was out of position, 15 down, and all that a sudden, with

less than 300 metres to go, he found the drive and he delivered it

significantly. He has gone very, very pale of face on this day, and I

am not surprised. Look at this push for the line. And just look at that

delivery, round the outside, and he says, it is mine.

Boasson Hagen had taken a big old turn, decided to Holgate, I reckon,

at one point. We got so much talent though will stop Swift was out

there, Viviani as well. Even happily know wanted to join the front. But

really, when it comes to the line, it seems there is only one man at

the moment who is head and shoulders above absolutely everybody. His name

is Marcel Kittel. There is your overhead shot. Look at

the ground he is making up, even at that point. Is rapidly approaching,

but look at the level of acceleration used. You only have to

be on the front when the line arrives, and I think out of all of

these 187 kilometres, he did that with just one wheel. Quite

remarkable. There is Mike Matthews. I'm just

wondering whether he has taken a secondary for here. He looked

absolutely exhausted, and it looks like he might well have had an

issue. Kittel takes it ahead of Ben Swift, Viviani, Apple Li Na,

Bouhanni, Boasson Hagen and Roberto Ferrari. Look at this list of names.

Absolutely so impressive. And yet, one man just delivered. Marcel

Kittel is in the red jersey. He has 100 points. That's a lot. Then he

is. It is dawning on him just exactly what he has delivered.

Another stage victory. That red jersey cash who on earth is going to

take it off in? Average speed was only attained very lately. Kittel.

STUDIO: you will not see a better bit of sprinting than that. What an

awesome performance from the Giant Shimano rider. The Giant that is

Marcel Kittel. It was phenomenal. He was out of position with one

kilometre to go, he was back, it was all Cannondale, we didn't think he

would get it, and 200 metres from the line, Kittel started coming

past. A headwind at the finish made it a longer sprint. Ben Swift went a

little bit soon, and so did Viviani. If it wasn't for the headwind,

Kittel would not have got there. Cannondale could do no more. Viviani

could not ask for more from his team-mates. They gave him the

perfect lead out and control that lead into the sprint finish. The

Team Sky guys did very well, fantastic to see Ben Swift gets

second in that stage, but how do you deal with Marcel Kittel, with

immense power output? Yes, there is no substitute for pure speed. It

that like Shimano hadn't got him in the right position at the right

time, but he just solved the problem by riding faster. That's all the

multitude of problems. It will be interesting to see what Mark

Cavendish will make of his performance in the last few days. He

is such a presence, and as a rider, feeling he is lurking behind you,

and he just sweeps past with that powerful display. The racing we have

got lined up this summer between Kittel and Mark Cavendish is going

to be breathtaking. Two contrasting styles. Cavendish is so punchy and

explosive, and Marcel Kittel, who on a day like today, with a headwind,

can take a long, long, long, sprint and just leaves getting faster. Two

different riders, two different ways of doing it. Many of these people on

the streets here in Dublin will be getting their first taste of a grand

tour, and seeing a race of this size. They must just be blown away

by what they have seen today. We have got spectators seven and a deep

along the finish line who have just seen one of the best sprint I think

they are ever going to see. A tremendous exhibition of how to ride

fast, how to get yourself out of trouble, and Marcel Kittel was

absolutely exhausted. He went white after the finish line. Facedown on

the road. That took a lot out of him, but he has a rest day

tomorrow, so he will be able to recover. Let's just look back at

some of the fantastic images that have made up today at the zero.

-- Giro d'Italia. Wonderful scenes there, fantastic

scenes in Dublin. We will have the presentation soon, and of course,

the gyro continues on into the 1st of June, but we know who lifted it

in 1989. It was local hero Stephen Roche.

Basically I was starting the gyro with a team-mate who actually won in

1986, and I was joint team leader. Going into the zero, I had won a lot

of races, and I felt there should be a

I had the pink jersey for the first ten days or so, and finally, it was

taken of me in a time trial. Once he got it at me, it was as if my ten

days in pink had not existed. They had to rework my plans, and had to

be creative in a sense, that if I wanted to do well on the Giro, I

could not stay where I was, but could not be seen to attack a

team-mate. I did not attack him, even though it was decided.

I got away from him, anyway, and I don't know about anybody else, in

the descent, but I put a few minutes in and took over the pink jersey. A

bit of aggro, a bit there. And he said I attacked him, and the Italian

public believed him, despite me telling them that I did not attack

him. I just went faster than him on the dissent is that I finally won,

of course, but it was very difficult, on the road, with the

Italian public wanting my skin because he had told them horrible

stories about me which were not true. On the road, there were big

signs, Roche, go home. People who had been waiting there for hours. As

I was coming past, they threw red wine at me, and sprayed me with it.

In my hotel, my mechanic looked after my own bike uniquely, for fear

of sabotage. My food was also looked after for fear that someone might

poison me. The tour for me was always a magnificent event. The

passion that people have was one of the things that I think helped gel

the Irish and Italian people. I love to see the kids getting into sport,

and in 15 years, some kids who came along to the Giro and their dad 's

shoulders will be going round in Lycra, having decided, I want to

become a cyclist and become a Giro winner. It will be a super legacy

for the Giro. Fantastic to hear his reflections on the Giro in 1987.

Stephen Roche, a cycling legend, but really a sporting hero. One of the

great sporting heroes are Ireland, a man I remember winning the Giro in

my childhood, and it is great to hear in talking about the Giro when

it is here in his hometown. It has been special in the last couple of

days. It has been a wonderful three days for Ireland, and further Giro

d'Italia. We realise that all these years that they are made for each

other. Marcel Kittel for the webby win of the today, and I hope you

have enjoyed our coverage. Goodbye for now.