2014 Tirreno-Adriatico: Stage 2 Photo Gallery

Moved to tears after his victory at the end of the second stage of Tirreno-Adriatico, Matteo Pelucchi did not forget to honor the memory of the teammate with whom he shared his room at the Tour of Qatar early this past February. Kristof Goddaert, who died tragically in an accident while training on February 18th, has remained in the memories of his IAM Cycling teammates. After this victory in a World Tour race in front of the best sprinters in the peloton, including Mark Cavendish, Peter Sagan, Marcel Kittel, Andr? Greipel as well as Arnaud D?mare, the 25 year old Pelucchi has well and truly demonstrated his strength and potential. After stepping down from the podium where he collected the red jersey worn by the leader in the points classification, Matteo Pelucchi took his head in his hands. ?But what have I done? I don?t think it has sunk in yet. It will take me a little time. Though I was first across the line, it is thanks to the amazing team work from all the guys. During the final circuit, all my teammates fulfilled all their tasks, protecting me perfectly at the front of the pack. I simply couldn?t disappoint them. Roger Kluge and Heinrich Haussler were assigned to protect me and slotted me into an ideal position once we passed under the final kilometer marker. But the whole sprint set up was total confusion and chaos. There really wasn?t much of a team with a train to take the situation in hand. I initially set myself onto Cavendish?s wheel, but then I gained a few places to grab onto Greipel with 300 meters to go. I came out from behind his draft and in spite of the head wind, I held on for the win.? 2014 Tirreno-Adriatico: Stage 2 Results Images copyright RCS Sport