FORLI, Italy (AP) β Alberto Contador held on to the overall lead and gained time on rival Richie Porte in the almost entirely flat 10th stage of the Giro d’Italia on Tuesday.
Italian rider Nicola Boem won the stage after getting into an early breakaway that reached the finish.
Porte had to change a punctured tire and dropped behind the main pack in the final kilometers, losing 47 seconds to the general classification leaders. A few members of Porte’s Sky team escorted him to the finish in a frantic effort to avoid more lost time.
Porte dropped from third to fourth overall, 1:09 behind Contador.
Boem required nearly 4 1/2 hours over the 200-kilometer (124-mile) leg from Civitanova Marche to Forli, along the Adriatic coast.
The 98th Giro ends on May 31 in Milan.
