Cape Town - Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio bettered her third place from the previous day to place second on a special Giro Rosa stage.
The race was contested over a 15 kilometre mountain time trial.
The seventh stage went up the category 1 Alpe Gera Di Campo Moro with around 1 000m of climbing.
Moolman-Pasio set an incredible time of 48 minutes and 35 seconds, the second fastest of the day. It moved her up to third in the overall standings.
"It was a good effort," Moolman-Pasio said. "I executed as we had planned, to do a good time but not absolutely kill myself. I’m happy with the effort, now we just have to stay out of trouble tomorrow and wait for the Zoncolan and the final stage. Everything is running smoothly and the vibe in the team is good, so we keep going."
Moolman-Pasio explained the climb: "A mixture of sections from six-seven percent and steeper sections in the middle. The last two-three kilometres flattened out and the finishing was quite fast. We continue to stick to the plan from here on out."
As part of the team's young rider development program, 22-year-old Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig represented the team well, finishing 8th.
"I set high expectations for myself, so I expected a little more today, but I also have to be realistic when I look at my age and those who finished ahead of me," Uttrup Ludwig said.
"Everyone is excited to see what to expect from the Zoncolan and it will be an exciting race for the fans. Tomorrow we'll maybe see a bunch sprint again then it's up to some steep climbing on the weekend."
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