"I failed, but I'm happy with my performance. I realized early on that it would be hard to win when I knew Di Luca's team was working for him. I realized that Danilo wanted the stage win but I thought that I should try." (AFP)
Chris Horner (Astana):
"Just before the last climb there was another crash next to me. I narrowly avoided going down and had to ride on the sidewalk for a short time to avoid the carnage. Luckily, for once, there was no one on the sidewalk at that moment! It seems that, just maybe, I have paid my dues to the crash gods, at least for now. ... The close calls are stealing some energy, but they don't seem to want any skin." (blog.oregonlive.com/horner)
Robbie Hunter (Barloworld):
"Interesting day, from almost stopping 'cause his wrist was sore to being caught 20 meters to go! Soler is a class natural climber!" (Twitter)
Bradley Wiggins (Garmin-Slipstream):
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"I continued to see a progression in my climbing by staying with the leaders until 1k to go to the summit finish. Seemed a little strange as it was less than a month ago I was battling across the pavé with the likes of Boonen, Pozzato, Hushovd and company — whereas today it felt like and episode of 'Lord of the Rings' on a mission to the mountain of Sodor (sic)! (www.slipstreamsports.com)
Lars Michaelsen (Saxo Bank director):
"For Jens to take this mountain stage was obviously against all odds, but the elderly gentleman is set for any kind of task. He is always being positive and although he is aware that the best climbers in the world are chasing him he is still able to joke around until the moment he is caught. We don't have any riders for the overall standings which means we have several free cards to play, and we'll take advantage of that throughout the rest of the race." (www.team-saxobank.com)
Carlos Sastre (Cervélo TestTeam):
“The fourth stage of this year's Giro was a really hard and fast stage, bringing about the race's first natural selection. The race followed a steady pace, more in the style of the Tour de France than the Giro d'Italia. The passes weren't too steep and there weren't any excessively hard grades, meaning that a constant speed was maintained. In fact, the last pass in the last 13 kilometres (I think), was ridden at an average speed of 26 km/h...
"I didn't feel at my best today, but I didn't feel bad either. I was up there with the best riders throughout without any difficulties. Now we have to keep looking forward and focus on tomorrow's stage - I think the last climb should be harder and more decisive than today's."
