TRIESTE, Italy — Lance Armstrong gained time on his rivals again at the Giro d’Italia on Sunday, yet the seven-time Tour de France winner still maintains he has no designs on winning the three-week race.
“I still don’t think I’m a contender for the overall, but I feel better than I thought I would feel,” Armstrong said.
Alessandro Petacchi edged Mark Cavendish to win the second stage in a mass sprint, and Cavendish retained the overall leader’s pink jersey.
Armstrong moved from 15th place to 10th, 27 seconds behind.
Armstrong finished in the main pack with the same time as Petacchi, while overall race favorite Ivan Basso and Armstrong’s Astana teammate Levi Leipheimer each finished 13 seconds behind, dropping back when the group was split by a crash with about 3 miles left.
“That’s the risk of the early stages in a big tour in a finale. I was lucky to be there with (Jose Luis Rubiera), and he kept me out of trouble,” Armstrong said.
Before the Giro began, Armstrong said he would support Leipheimer in his bid to win. But Leipheimer blew his front tire on a downhill section before the crash.
A better indication of Armstrong’s and Leipheimer’s aspirations will come during the first serious mountain climbs in the Dolomite range, beginning Tuesday.
“It’s going to be a hard three weeks, but also a beautiful three weeks,” Armstrong said.
