Is it Jonas Vingegaard’s big day at the Giro d’Italia?

There are tough days at the Giro, and there is Saturday. It’s a killer.

The Giro d’Italia heads back into the high mountains for Stage 14 with a just brutal 133-km Alpine stage from Aosta to Pila. It could finally be the day that Jonas Vingegaard takes control of the race.

After Tuesday’s dead-flat TT, the overall contenders have largely been able to recover and save energy for this key mountain test. Saturday’s leg-breaker packs more than 4,000 m of climbing into a relatively short stage. Except there’s really nowhere to recover. So it’s going to be a proper test for anyone going for the overall. (And a lot of swearing for the guys surviving in the gruppetto.)

The fireworks should begin early on the Col du Saint-Barthélemy. It’s a 15.5-km big ol’ lump averaging 6.9 per cent. From there, the peloton takes a string of climbs including Doues, Lin Noir and Verrogne before the summit finish to Pila.

The final climb is 15.9 km at 7.3 per cent and rises to the ski station overlooking the Aosta Valley beneath Mont Blanc. It is the kind of steady, punishing effort where the strongest GC riders can crack rivals and gain serious time. There could be serious gaps.

All eyes will be on Jonas Vingegaard (Hansen) and Visma-Lease a Bike, who appear ready to take control of the race. You’ll most likely see Sepp Kuss and Victor Campenaerts right at the front before the decisive climbs, keeping the tempo high and ultimately, the Dane should launch.

Riders like Felix Gall, Thymen Arensman and Derek Gee-West will also be looking to make gains before the final week, or at least keep up with Vingegaard as long as they can. A guy like Giulio Ciccone would normally try something on a day like this, but he will probably be doing lieutenant duty for the Canadian national champion. Gee-West is sitting eighth overall, and it’s going to take some of the guys ahead of him having a lousy day for him to move up.

But if the favourites go all-in on the final climb, Stage 14 may, and should, end with a new rider in pink.
Either way, it’s gonna be a helluva fun day (to watch). You can find the race on Flobikes.com at 6:45 a.m. There’s also the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup at 5:00 a.m. EDT. Canadian Cycling Magazine will have reports for both the drop bar race in the Giro, and the flat bar race in Nové Město, Czechia.

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