The Giro d’Italia gets underway this Saturday in Pescara, a city in the Abruzzo region of Italy, with some of the world’s best cyclists itching to get their hands on the race’s pink jersey.
While it’s often an unpredictable and dramatic affair, the Italian Grand Tour always guarantees an action packed three weeks of racing with some of the biggest names set to take part.
One of the biggest pulls of this year’s Corsa Rosa is the 70 plus kilometres of time trialling on offer, which is spread over three stages, including a terrifying mountain time trial to Monte Lussari.
Last year’s top three: Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe), Richard Carapaz of EF Education-EasyPost, formerly of Ineos Grenadiers, and Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious) won’t be present. However the competition will still be fierce in the fight for the Maglia Rosa, with some other faces.
As well as the two outright favourites, Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) and Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma), here are several other riders worth paying close attention to once the race gets underway and the battle for overall victory gets going.
Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step)
(Image credit: Getty Images)
The reigning road world champion comes into the Giro in sensational form.
Two weeks ago, Evenepoel won a second Liège–Bastogne–Liège at a canter, and looked absolutely imperious as he added yet another huge result to his palmares. After the 2021 edition of the Italian Grand Tour, won by Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers), which he rode but abandoned, Evenepoel has unfinished business with the Giro and will be looking to right a few wrongs in Italy.
With the experience gained in the last 18 months, which included a Vuelta a España and World Championship victory, the Belgian is rightly one of the outright favourites, and will fight all the way to Rome for the overall title.
Quick-Step come into the race with a squad stacked full of climbers, similar to when Evenepoel won in Spain. With that in mind, the Belgian team will present formidable opposition to Jumbo-Visma and Ineos Grenadiers in the tough final week in the Dolomites.
Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma)
(Image credit: Getty Images)
After spending weeks at altitude in Tenerife with Evenepoel for company, Roglič has certainly gained an eagle eye view of his opponents strengths and weaknesses ahead of the Grande Partenza in Pescara on Saturday.
The duo were staying in the same hotel on Mount Teide, finalising their individual preparations for a shot…