Anna Henderson of Great Britain delivered a stellar performance in the second stage of the Women's Giro d'Italia, securing the pink jersey as the overall leader. The Olympic time-trial silver medallist outpaced French rider Dilyxine Miermont in a thrilling uphill sprint finish after the duo broke away from the peloton with 41.4km remaining in the 92km stage through the Alps. Henderson, representing Lidl-Trek, claimed the pink jersey from Switzerland's Marlen Reusser, who had won the opening stage. Henderson now holds a 15-second lead in the general classification.

"As a team, we made the plan to be aggressive because we knew it would be a hard final, and we have a really good team for attacking," said Henderson. "We're here for stages, this is what we came to do, and I'm so thankful for my teammates for supporting me. I'm just beyond grateful and happy, I can't believe it. It's my first World Tour victory, my first individual Grand Tour victory. I'm in shock."

Defending champion Elisa Longo Borghini of Italy finished sixth and is third in the general classification, 31 seconds behind Henderson. The eight-day race continues with a 122km stage through the Alps on Tuesday, between Vezza d'Oglio and Trento.

Stage Two Results

1. Anna Henderson (GBR/Lidl-Trek) 2hrs 24mins 30secs
2. Dilyxine Miermont (Fra/Ceratizit Pro Cycling Team) same time
3. Soraya Paladin (Ita/Canyon Sram) +26secs
4. Eleonora Ciabocco (Ita/Team Picnic PostNL) same time
5. Marlen Reusser (Swi/Movistar) same time

General Classification After Stage Two

1. Anna Henderson (GBR/Lidl-Trek) 2hrs 42mins 3secs
2. Marlen Reusser (Swi/Movistar) +15 secs
3. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita/UAE Team ADQ) +31secs
4. Anna van der Breggen (Ned/Team SD Worx-Protime) +35secs
5. Monica Trinca Colonel (Ita/Liv AlUla Jayco) +56secs