As we wait for photos of today’s stage to be made available to accompany the review of today’s stage the painting above by Pieter Bruegel can serve as an illustration in the meantime. It was a battle from the start to the finish where Steven Kruijswijk came out on top.
A race to the ski resort of Andalo on the Paganella plateau and what promises to be a lively stage with just 132km to cover and some fast climbs.
The Art of The Jersey book celebrates the jerseys of the peloton over the years and the publisher has sent two copies meaning one for review and one to give away. To enter simply pick who will be the last rider on the general classification when the Giro d’Italia finishes on Sunday.
The Giro enjoys a rest day in Brixen, deep in the German-speaking Tyrol area of Italy and once home to Pope Damasus II whose papal reign lasted just 23 days. A study in brevity but Steven Kruijswijk only needs to hang on for a matter of days to win his sacred contest and right now he is looking as sure as his shoulders. The Dutchman was milliseconds behind Alexander Foliforov’s surprise result yesterday but minutes ahead of some of his rivals, notably Vincenzo Nibali who climbed up the Alpe di Siusi only to fall down the overall classification. Interrogated how he felt yesterday Nibali replied in a word that doesn’t need translation: “demoralizzato“.
A 10.5km mountain time trial. It sounds easy only the riders have two consecutive days of hard racing in their legs must now produce the most intense effort today.
They say the Dolomites have pink hue because the granite rocks contain pink crystals. As the sun sets this evening on their peaks the pink glow could be more vivid than ever as the mountains bask in the glory of the Giro d’Italia and a fine day’s racing. The race finally saw a major shake-up including the collapse of Alejandro Valverde. The maglia rosa now hangs on the broad shoulders of Steven Kruijswijk while Vincenzo Nibali and Esteban Chaves will plot ways to turn the race to their advantage.
The Dolomites stage, a tappone as they say in Italian: not just a stage but a big stage. A 210km race across some of the most scenic climbs in the Alps and with five mountain passes above 2,000m, a total of 5,400m of vertical gain and a nasty “wall” just before the finish.
So far, so little. The general classification has seen small climbs used to tease apart time gaps measured in seconds. Today’s stage is the first mountain stage and features a series of very steep climbs and twisting descents to put race leader Bob Jungels under pressure.
What are you doing this evening? André Greipel is packing his bags and leaving the Giro with exit manoeuvre that’s been so well planned his flight home was probably booked weeks ago. It’s shocking as he leads the Giro’s red jersey points contest and is perfectly healthy. But there’s a refreshing honesty to it all too.
Having read La Gazzetta Dello Sport last week, time to review how most Italians follow the Giro: on TV via the national broadcaster RAI. As well as the live race coverage there’s plenty more in and around the race to watch. What it’s like to spend a day watching this?