Fernando Gaviria, who finished second on stage 5 of the Giro d'Italia, bounced his front wheel and continued to beat his fist on the saddle in frustration at his bike after it stopped crossing the line.

"Che bici di merda," or "What a shitty bike," the Colombian said as he was caught on camera.

Gaviria appeared to be pedaling at a high cadence to catch up with Arnaud Demare on the finishing straight in Messina, but in another video (opens in new tab) he appears to be stuck on a 14-tooth sprocket.

"I can't say anything. Because I'm going to be pissed. I can't say anything about the bike."

In another interview with Eurosport, he added, "It's something you can't say on TV."

UAE Team Emirates later issued its own statement, in which it said that Gaviria "had a problem with the derailleur and could not get into the required gear," and speculated that "someone's wheel may have touched it from behind."

In a post-race interview, Gaviria claimed that he "had the legs to win," but given how well he raced down the finish straight, there is no doubt that he felt let down by his equipment.

He also revealed that lead-out man Max Richeze suffered a mechanical problem when his chain came off with 1 km to go. Nevertheless, Gaviria quickly attempted to defuse the controversy by describing his frustration as "stupid" but also "part of racing."

"It's not just the bike. It's what happens in racing.

"My chain came off after one kilometer and I couldn't do anything. [The anger and frustration is because I wanted to win. I felt I had one more step, I felt I had the legs, I fought, and I lost. ...... It's silly to be frustrated, but that's racing."

This is not the first time Gaviria has suffered mechanical misfortune at the Giro d'Italia. Last year at the Giro d'Italia, he finished fifth after his saddle came off in the last kilometer of stage 13.

After finishing third on stage 2, Gaviria will ride a mostly flat route to Scalea on the Italian mainland on stage 6.