Team Columbia went out first and finished first in the opening time trial of the Giro d'Italia with Britain's Mark Cavendish bagging the pink jersey on Saturday. Garmin-Slipstream, criticized by rivals for concentrating their preparation on the time trial rather than the three-week race, came in second while Lance Armstrong's Astana pulled off a minor surprise by finishing third. “We are psyched with that. The guys were smooth and strong. Going to be a fun three weeks,” Armstrong told his Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/lancearmstrong). Going first on the 20-km course around Venice's Lido may have been seen as a disadvantage but America's Team Columbia surged round and never looked like being beaten. Times were recorded for the fifth-finishing rider in the teams and Columbia managed the flat route in 21 minutes 50 seconds, with Cavendish leading the way. The 23-year-old from the Isle of Man won the Milan-San Remo race in March and again showed his sprinting skills to become the first Briton to wear the pink jersey. “It just happens that I wear the jersey for the team. Someone had to cross the line first,” Cavendish said. Slightly overcast conditions and a pick up in the wind affected teams in the middle while some lost time with lead riders pulling too far ahead of their fifth-placed colleague. Avoiding the distraction of a panoramic view of the Venice skyline across the lagoon, Armstrong grimaced as he hauled himself over the line after his Astana team had gone out last. The 37-year-old American, who returned to cycling in January after spending more than three years in retirement, had only just recovered from a broken collarbone and lies 15th overall. Favorite Ivan Basso was philosophical about his Liquigas team coming in eighth. “Our squad has been picked with three weeks in mind. We are only at the first day,” he told reporters. Quick-Step, who learnt before the race that top rider Tom Boonen -- not at the Giro – had tested positive for cocaine, were 17th. Sunday's 156-km second stage goes from Jesolo to Trieste in the very east of Italy. The finish is in Rome on May 31.
