after the great war ended, the race resumed in 1919. this edition of the race navigated through the ruined parts of northern italy, which made it hard for the organizers and riders. costante girardengo — the eventual winner — became the first rider to lead the giro from start to finish. en route to winning overall, girardengo won seven of the ten stages that composed the event. in addition, the belgian marcel buysse became the first foreigner to finish on the podium; buysse finished third overall, over an hour slower than girardengo. the following year's giro began with close to fifty riders and finished with ten. the first stage of the 1920 giro d'italia briefly went into switzerland, which was the first time that the giro had ever left its home country of italy. girardengo came into the race the favorite, but injuries sustained from crashing in the second stage forced him to withdraw. during the second stage, gaetano belloni capitalized on girardengo's, race leader giuseppe olivieri's, carlo galetti's withdrawal to win the second stage and take the lead. belloni, known by many as "the eternal second, went on to win the giro and proved he could win a race.