The Giro d’Italia Women reaches its defining moment on Saturday with a very, very tough 105-km stage from Rivoli to Sestrière, featuring the legendary Colle delle Finestre.
After a week of racing that has gradually whittled down the contenders, the battle for the maglia rosa appears set to come down to a showdown between Anna van der Breggen and Demi Vollering…with Oro-Medonte, Ont.’s Isabella Holmgren hot on their cleats, sitting in fourth.
Van der Breggen begins the day with a one-minute advantage over her Dutch rival, but the Finestre is unlike anything the peloton has faced so far.
The climb stretches for 18.5 km at an average gradient of 9.2 per cent, with its upper slopes turning to gravel and often producing major time gaps.
Vollering looked the stronger of the two on the mountain stage to Santo Stefano di Cadore, although she was unable to distance the race leader. Saturday’s longer and steeper terrain may offer a different outcome.
Several riders could still play a major role in the outcome. Lidl-Trek’s Holmgren has climbed impressively throughout the race and sits among the strongest young riders in the field. Germany’s Antonia Niedermaier has also looked increasingly dangerous in the high mountains. There’s a few other Canucks that will definitely be there, including world champion Magdeleine Vallières-Mill. She fought hard on Wednesday to finish 8th. Maybe she might try for a flyer since she’s out of reach of the podium at this point? It would be awesome to see the rainbow jersey take the dub. And there’s also Liv AlUla Jayco’s Nadia Gontova, who has been riding superb this Giro. She said her climbing legs were coming back after Vuelta a Burgos Féminas, and she was not wrong. She had a great uphill TT, and animated the race big time on Wednesday.
After the Finestre comes a descent and the gradual climb to Sestrière, where the 2026 Giro d’Italia Women is likely to be won—or lost. The legendary Sestrière has been the site of some pretty amazing finishes over the years–including last year’s dramatic finish in the men’s Giro, where Simon Yates rode himself into the pink jersey on the penultimate stage. Coverage of today’s stage is live on FloBikes.com at 9:20 a.m. EDT. Canadian Cycling Magazine will have a report after.
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