Stage 14 of the 2026 Giro d’Italia was one of the biggest challenges of cycling’s first Grand Tour, and Durango’s Sepp Kuss was a big help to Visma-Lease a Bike teammate Jonas Vingegaard, taking the lead of the general classification on Saturday.
Kuss, using his climbing prowess with the rest of the Visma-Lease a Bike squad, helped guide Vingegaard through three Category 1 climbs, 133 kilometers and to the stage win that started in Aosta and finished in Pila. It was a critical stage win that put Vingegaard in the pink leaders jersey and gave him over a two-minute lead over Afonso Eulálio in the GC. Kuss finished in 17th.
“The goal was to win the stage today,” Visma sports director Marc Reef said. “The guys did an amazing job. As a team, we showed how strong we are. Winning the stage and taking over the lead in the general classification is very special. We are in a good position, but nothing has been decided yet. We will stay focused every single day.”
A group of about a dozen riders broke away to begin the mountainous stage, with the Visma-Lease a Bike squad at the front of the peloton with their yellow jerseys, doing all the work for Vingegaard and his quest to take over the GC.
One by one, the Visma-Lease a Bike riders dropped off the front of the peloton after doing their job of guiding Vingegaard through the brutal stage. As this was happening, the pelton was chasing down the breakaway and eventually passing the breakaway with less than 10 km left.
Kuss dropped off the front as Vingegaard looked ready to take the stage win and the GC lead as Eulálio was over a minute behind the front of the race with 5.5 km remaining.
Vingegaard made his move with 4.6 km left on the final and easily won the stage in front of the crowd in the mountains.
“This is one of the victories I will remember for a long time,” Vingegaard said. “I didn’t have a specific plan about when I wanted to attack, but I knew the final part of the climb was steeper. That’s where I really wanted to try and make the difference. I felt strong today and it’s great to start tomorrow in the pink jersey.”
Vingegaard won the stage in three hours, 53 minutes and a second, 49 seconds ahead of Felix Gall in second. Kuss was 14th, 2:46 behind Vingegaard.
On Sunday, the riders had a warm and very flat Stage 15, 156 km from Voghera to Milan. Kuss and Vingegaard stayed in the massive peloton as it was a sprinter’s stage to win. Fredrik Dversnes won the stage, finishing 57 seconds ahead of Kuss in 52nd and Vingegaard in 60th.
Heading into Monday’s mountainous Stage 16, Vingegaard remains 2:26 ahead of Eulálio in the GC. Kuss is in 17th in the GC, 11:22 behind Vingegaard.
The Giro ends on Sunday, May 31, and there are still a few mountainous stages that Kuss could take a surprise stage win, especially if Vingegaard can keep and extend his GC lead.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
