Pedersen makes it 2 wins out of 3 at Giro to take back pink jersey from Roglic

VLORE, Albania (AP) - Mads Pedersen reclaimed the leader's pink jersey with his second victory in this year's Giro d'Italia, as he won a bunch sprint at the end of the third stage on Sunday.

Pedersen, who rides for Lidl-Trek, edged Corbin Strong by half a wheel at the end of the hilly 160-kilometer (99-mile) leg that started and finished in the coastal city of Vlore.

Orluis Aula was third.

Pedersen also won the opening stage on Friday but had seen pre-race favorite Primoz Roglic take the pink jersey from him on Saturday.

Pedersen has moved back into pink, ahead of two more sprint stages back in Italy. The Danish cyclist has a nine-second lead over Roglic and is 14 seconds ahead of Mathias Vacek.

It was the last of three stages in Albania before the peloton makes the short transfer across the Adriatic to the Italian region of Puglia, where the race will resume on Tuesday after a rest day.

The fourth stage travels through much of the heel of Italy along a mostly flat, 189-kilometer route from the UNESCO World Heritage site of Alberobello to Lecce. It should end in another bunch sprint.

The race ends in Rome on June 1.