Danish veteran Michael Valgren burst clear in the final kilometre to win stage 17 of the Giro d'Italia on Wednesday.
The 34-year-old EF Education-EasyPost rider hung on grimly alongside Movistar's Einer Rubio as the 200km stage concluded with a series of sharp climbs and fast descents.
After the two leaders were joined by a small group of chasers, Valgren showed his superior sprinting skill to go alone and cross the line well ahead of Andreas Leknessund.
Italian Damiano Caruso was third.
"When I have good legs I'm pretty good at it," Valgren said after winning his first Grand Tour stage.
His compatriot Jonas Vingegaard finished safely in the main peloton to preserve his big lead in the general classification.
He will take a lead of 4:03 into Thursday's 171-km stage from Fai della Paganella to Pieve di Soligo.
Ireland's Ryan Mullen (NSN Cycling Team) and Darren Rafferty (EF Education - EasyPost) crossed the line 93rd and 126th respectively.
Rafferty is 29th in the youth classification and 35th in the sprint category.
It was an emotional victory for Valgren who four years ago suffered career-threatening injuries when he crashed over a guard rail into a ravine at La Route d'Occitanie.
He was part of a large breakaway group of 28 riders that formed early in the stage and was never far from the front.
As the group began to splinter, he and Colombia's Rubio pulled clear with Valgren close to breaking point at times.
But when a group of six formed at the front near the end of the final 5km climb to the finish, Valgren took matters into his own hands and no one could stay with him.
"This was missing from my resume," he said. "I think I deserved this. I think I've always said, my career has been pretty good, but I needed this Grand Tour stage win."
