GIRO D’ITALIA
The Giro d’Italia’s 2018 adventure in Israel didn’t put organisers RCS off either far-flung starts, nor political contentiousness around their choice of host. In 2020, the race will kick off in Hungary, which will add logistical headaches, even if not quite on the same scale as two years ago - at least Hungary and Italy are on the same continent. All that said, it won’t have escaped anybody’s notice that there is no day set aside for the transfer from Ngykanizsa to Sicily. It has also not escaped the notice of those who are keeping tabs on the growing trend for sportswashing in cycling that Hungary is currently ruled by the authoritarian Victor Orbán, who has been criticised by intergovernmental organisations for antidemocratic reforms and repression of the press.
On a sporting level, it’s a typical Giro - lumpy and bumpy stages through the first half of the race, along with a couple of tough mountain stages, just to keep the GC contest ticking over. Then the mid-race time trial, which in itself is on a hard course, heralds a final week of almost relentless climbing. There’s a midweek double whammy on the Wednesday and Thursday of the last week - the summit finish of Madonna di Campiglio via Monte Bondoni, then another uphill finish at Laghi di Cancano, this time via the highest point of the Giro, the 2,758m Stelvio.
But the queen stage comes on the penultimate day, with the Giro crossing into France via the 2,744m
Colle dell’Agnello and iconic Col d’Izoard preceding the return into Italy via the border crossing at Mongenèvre and a final summit finish at Sestriere. Pitfalls also await the unwary in the tough mid-race phase. Stage 12, starting and finishing in Marco Pantani’s home of Cesenatico, never breaches 1,000m altitude, but there are five classified climbs en route. Stage 15 to Piancavallo is a bona fide middle mountain stage with a summit finish at 1,290m, and the next day will cover three laps of a final circuit based on the 16 per cent Monte di Ragogna before the finish in San Daniele del Friuli.
2019 winner Richard Carapaz is returning to defend his crown, this time for Ineos; his rivals will be Simon Yates, who dominated the race in 2018 before faltering at the last, two-times winner and 2019 runner-up Vincenzo Nibali and race debutant Romain Bardet. The flat sprints will favour Dylan Groenewegen, but Peter Sagan also rides his first Giro. This may be a typical Giro, even down to the atypical gran partenza, but some faces, at least, will be new.