Giro d’Italia 2024, the 107th edition is unveiled

The route of the 107th Giro d’Italia, running from 4 to 26 May 2024, was presented at the Teatro Sociale of Trento, during the days of Il Festival of Sport. The Event, presented by Cristina Fantoni and Nino Morici, was attended by many well-known faces in sport, entertainment, institutions and companies, all of whom are part of the great Giro d’Italia family. The winner of the last Giro d’Italia, Primož Roglič, Filippo Ganna, Jai Hindley and three-time World Champion, Peter Sagan, as well as a great rider who has made the history of the Corsa Rosa, Vincenzo Nibali, also spoke on the stage. To unveil the Trophy and talk about the Giro d’Italia Women two cycling champions as Elisa Longo Borghini and Letizia Paternoster. Among the institutions also present were Francesco Lollobrigida, Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry, and Cordiano Dagnoni, President of the Italian Cycling Federation.
Doing the honours were the President of RCS Mediagroup, Urbano Cairo, the Managing Director at RCS Sport, Paolo Bellino, the Director of the Giro d’Italia, Mauro Vegni, and the Director of La Gazzetta dello Sport, Stefano Barigelli.

Grande Partenza

It starts with two unusual stages already full of climbs that will force the captains and ‘favourites’ to be already in good condition, although they are not such as to generate excessive gaps.
The 136-kilometre Venaria Reale-Torino is a lightened re-edition of the “mountain stage in the city”. After an initial approach through the hills of Turin, it approaches Superga from a less-travelled side on the day of the 75th anniversary of the Grande Torino tragedy. After passing the finish line for the first time, it will climb Colle Maddalena from the Eremo side to finish on the traditional finish line in front of the Gran Madre.
Twenty-four hours later we will start from Canavese (San Francesco al Campo) and riding through the hills of Biella to arrive at the final climb of Oropa (150 km) where in 1999 Marco Pantani achieved one of his most iconic victories by remounting 49 cyclists after a mechanical problem and winning the stage.
The third stage offers a potential bunch sprint (Novara-Fossano 165 km), but the sprinters will have to earn it since the precedent of a GranPiemonte (2009) shows how a single attacker, that time Philippe Gilbert, can overturn the prediction and arrive alone.

The First Week

The Giro moves on to Liguria (Acqui Terme-Andora 187km) and then Tuscany (Genoa-Lucca 177km) before a series of demanding and in some cases potentially decisive stages. There is one hilly stage, an individual time trial and a mountain stage with an uphill finish. In order: Viareggio-Rapolano Terme (177 km) with about 12 km of gravel roads in the finale, in part already seen at the Strade Bianche. This is followed by Foligno-Perugia, an individual time trial (37.2 km) with the last 4 km uphill to reach the historic centre, touching the most famous places in Umbria linked to Saint Francis such as Assisi and Spello. After that, the second uphill finish on the 14 km to Prati di Tivo (Spoleto-Prati di Tivo 153 km), already the site of stages at the Tirreno-Adriatico on several occasions. From Spoleto, we cross the Umbrian Apennines to arrive at the Gran Sasso massif. Before the rest day, the caravan arrives in Naples (Avezzano-Napoli 206 km), in Via Caracciolo, with a potential sprint stage.

The Second Week

After the rest day, we set off again from Pompeii for a stage that features an unprecedented uphill finish (Pompei-Cusano Mutri [Bocca della Selva] 141 km) and culturally links archaeology and palaeontology. Pompeii and nearby Longola in the starting area speak of Roman history, of daily life until the eruption of Vesuvius. Pietraroja a few tens of kilometres away tells the story of the baby dinosaur ‘Ciro’ found fossilised practically intact, which has made it possible to learn many things about the world 65 million years ago.
Francavilla al Mare will host a well-deserved sprint (Foiano di Val Fortore-Francavilla al Mare 203 km) before the ‘muri di Fano’ stage (Martinsicuro-Fano 183 km). A selective stage characterised by the ‘low walls’ of the Marche region, those with high but not extreme gradients, which should bring a selected bunch to compete for the stage victory.
There will be another sprint in the Riccione-Cento (179 km), which passes through the areas devastated by the flood of May 2023. Weekend with two very demanding stages: Castiglione delle Stiviere-Desenzano del Garda: individual time trial (31.0 km) and Manerba del Garda-Livigno (Mottolino) of 223 km with an unprecedented uphill finish. The time trial is the last chance for the specialists to build up an advantage over the climbers but, by the following day, the climbers will have the chance to turn the tables. In order to reach Livigno, 5200 m of vertical elevation will be overcome, with the interminable Forcola di Livigno in the finale (trespassing in Switzerland) and the arrival at Mottolino, where the last 1800 m run on asphalt along a ski slope with alternating 18% ramps and short, almost flat sections.

The Third Week

Rest day and departure from Livigno for the Cima Coppi stage, which in 2024 will once again be the Stelvio Pass with its 2758 m. The Livigno-Santa Cristina Valgardena (Monte Pana) offers 4400 m of vertical elevation culminating with the final 2 km of Monte Pana always above 10%. The next stage from Selva di Val Gardena to Passo Brocon is 159 km long and is one of the decisive stages of the last week. With the exception of the short stretch from Canazei to Predazzo, there are only climbs and descents. The riders will climb the Passo Sella and the Passo Rolle, which made the history of the Giro in the early post-war period, to pass the Brocon Pass from two sides. That of Canal San Bovo, which has already seen the Giro of 1955-56-57 and 67 pass, and the unprecedented one of Val Malene with the long stretch over 10% that leads to the finish.
The sprint to Padua (Fiera di Primiero-Padova 166 km) and the medium-difficulty stage to Sappada (154 km from Mortegliano with Passo Duron and Sella Valcalda before the finale – the stage passes through Peonis where Ottavio Bottecchia died) anticipate the showdown at Alpago-Bassano del Grappa (175 km with two climbs of Monte Grappa from Semonzo that saw the victorious attack by Nibali in 2010 and the time trial won by Quintana in 2014). Grande Arrivo in Rome with a circuit in the Eternal City.

Statistics

Regione Piemonte will host the Grande Partenza of the Giro d’Italia for the fourth time. The precedents are: 1961, on the occasion of the Centenary of the Unification of Italy the start was in Turin with a stage called ‘Trittico Tricolore’ which included 3 circuits (White, Red and Green). The stage winner was Miguel Poblet. 2011, the 150th anniversary of the Unification of Italy was celebrated, the start was with the Venaria Reale-Torino, a team time trial won by HTC-Highroad and Maglia Rosa to Marco Pinotti. 2021, start with an individual time trial in Turin, won by Filippo Ganna.
4 May, the day of the first stage, will mark the 75th anniversary of the Superga tragedy. The Corsa Rosa will pay homage to the Invincibili of the Grande Torino by passing through Superga.
Santuario D’Oropa will be the Montagna of the Giro d’Italia 25 years after the epic victory of the Pirata.
45th stage finish in Naples, which will host the arrival of the Corsa Rosa for the third year in a row.
There are 7 new start locations: San Francesco al Campo (stage 2), Foiano di Val Fortore (stage 11), Martinsicuro (stage 12), Castiglione delle Stiviere (stage 14), Manerba del Garda (stage 15), Santa Cristina Valgardena (stage 17) and Mortegliano (stage 19).
There are 6 new finish locations: Andora (stage 4), Rapolano Terme (stage 6), Cusano Mutri (stage 10), Desenzano del Garda (stage 14), Santa Cristina Valgardena (stage 16), and Passo Brocon (stage 17).
Passo dello Stelvio is Cima Coppi for the 11th time. At 2758 metres, it is the highest altitude ever reached by the Giro d’Italia.
Rome hosts the Grande Arrivo for the sixth time in history. The precedents are 1911, 1950, 2009, 2018 and 2023.

Giro d'Italia Women

During the event, the Giro d’Italia Women’s Trophy, which this year will be organised by RCS Sport, was also presented. The Trophy was unveiled to the public by the two champions Elisa Longo Borghini and Letizia Paternoster. The shape of the Trophy is that of the inverted eight, the symbol of infinity (∞), which in mathematics indicates an unlimited dimension. A choice that wants to represent the infinite passion, values, challenges and successes that the Corsa Rosa conveys.