Wilco Kelderman greeted the end of the Giro d'Italia modestly. I'm happy," he said. It's been a really good three weeks." The Dutchman had just completed his final time trial in Verona and was now awaiting news of his Bora-Hansgrohe teammate Jai Hindley's progress in the 17.4km test.

Two years ago, Kelderman was Hindley's stablemate in Sunweb. At that time, Kelderman finished the race in third place overall and was frustrated about the team's strategy in the crucial Stelvio stage.

This time, Kelderman left the Giro with very different feelings, despite a mechanical accident at the end of the opening week that doomed his own overall challenge.

If Hindley's scorching attack atop the Passo di Fedaia on Saturday ultimately won the Giro, the tone for Bora-Hansgrohe's race was set a week earlier in Turin when Kjeldelman cut through the lead pack with a dominant pace-making This would be.

"I don't think about disappointment in myself anymore. This teamwork gives me much more than just thinking about myself. Jai wasn't the only one who won. It was a team effort," Kelderman said. Hindley had not yet reached the intermediate checkpoint, but he had great faith in his teammates.

Last year, Kelderman finished fifth overall in the Tour de France in his debut season with Bora-Hansgrohe, but conscious of Tadej Pogachar's dominance in July, the German team consciously left Alexandre Vlasov out of the Tour in 2022, decided to send most of their best stage race riders to the Giro.

Kelderman was selected to start in Budapest, forming a three-man leadership with Emanuel Buchmann and newcomer Hindley, as well as climbers Leonard Kemna and Ben Zwiehoff. Their combined strength proved to be comparable to that of Ineos, which has won three of the last four editions.

"It's crazy. We planned to go to the Giro this winter with the GC team at full strength. For [director] Ralph Denk, he was so emotional and happy. He made a plan for us to go for the GC.

After winning the Etna summit on stage 4, Kemna was instrumental in the turning point of the entire race at Passo Fedaia on Saturday. The German dropped back from an early breakaway and was replaced by Hindley, who made up a brief but important pace. Calapaz's resistance was finally broken when he increased the pressure 3km from the top of the Giro's final pass.

"After one hard pull with everything I had, Kalapas fell off and Jai was able to cut his time considerably," Kemna said almost nonchalantly as he reached the top of Fedaia. "I was a little surprised, but on the other hand very happy. It was a dream scenario for us."

After completing the time trial in Verona on Sunday, Kemna couldn't have raved more. It was a great feeling to be there and to know that I could help do something good." Thankfully for the reporters gathered in the arena, Kelderman was more eloquent.

"It was crazy, actually. I was pretty far back, listening to everything through my earphones. I saw some familiar faces on the climb and I started to get emotional. I was so happy I cried. But Carapas has already won the Giro and is super strong. But Carapaz has already won the Giro, and he is super strong. It was really beautiful."

When Bora-Hansgrohe first entered the WorldTour in 2017, it was largely thanks to the points total of newcomer Peter Sagan, a three-time world champion who took three more green jerseys at the Tour and in 2018 won Paris-Roubaix. victory in Roubaix.

Bora-Hansgrohe had already begun to focus on developing German talent in the second half of Sagan's tenure, but the team's emphasis switched even more when Sagan moved to Total Energy last winter. Sam Bennett returned from Quick Step, where he had been for two years, team's lead sprinter, but the team also carefully considered how best to deploy its stage racing talent. Hindley had a troubled 2021 season, but provided a new dimension to Bora-Hansgrohe over the next three weeks. The decision was made to concentrate on the Giro rather than the Tour.

"Jai has already finished second in the Giro, and that is not something that can be done by chance," another newcomer, Enrico Gasparotto Sportif, told BiciPro. 'He has been incredibly consistent, not only in this Giro, but throughout the winter, between races and preparations. He was also fifth in the Tirreno-Adriatico.

Kelderman also sees parallels between him and Hindley's former team; in 2017, Kelderman supported Tom Dumoulin in the Giro. He watched the rest of the race from home and ultimately concluded that Dumoulin's victory changed the entire dynamic of the organization. Kelderman argued that Hindley's Giro victory could provide similar momentum for Bora Hansgrohe.

"It brings a lot," Kelderman said. 'Very much. I had already spoken to the sporting director. I remember in 2017 when Tom won the Giro in Sunweb. He won the Giro, and at the Tour he took the green jersey, the polka-dot jersey, and some stage wins. He was fourth in the Vuelta and won the team time trial at the World Championships. I think everyone at Bora-Hansgrohe is more motivated and morale boosted. I think we have more in our pockets this season."

An hour or so later, when Hindley signed up for the race winners' press conference, he suggested that his Giro victory was only the beginning.

"I think this is the first time Bora has had a rider on the podium of a Grand Tour (Buchmann finished fourth in the 2019 Tour - ed.) Definitely look out for Beulah Hansgrohe in future Grand Tours," Hindley said, smiling, "I'm not here to sock it to Centipede."