Sitting in second place, Ryder Hesjedal is poised for his final attack as the Giro d’Italia enters the final five stages of the 21-stage race.
Hesjedal finished 13th overall on Tuesday’s Stage 16 from Lemon Garda to Falzes, a 173 km leg through the mountains.
The Belmont high school grad will begin Wednesday’s Stage 17 from Falzes to Cortina in second place, 30 seconds back of current leader Joaquin Rodriquez Oliver.
On Sunday Hesjedal lost the maglia rosa, the famous pink jersey worn by the overall leader of the Giro, when he finished 12th on Stage 15. He also wore the leaders’ jersey on stages seven through nine last week.
Hesjedal’s Garmin-Barracuda teammate Ramunas Navardauskas also wore the maglia rosa after Garmin-Barracuda won the Stage 4 team time trial, just as it did in the 2011 Tour de France.
