Legendary duels, left-field business moves, and the role of La Gazzetta: How RCS turned the Giro d’Italia into a national treasure, and a billion Euro event

The Giro d’Italia is far more than a bike race. It’s a three-week celebration of cycling that showcases Italy’s beauty and culture better than a plate of pasta, an Aperol spritz, or an Armani fashion show.

The 21 stages of the Corsa Rosa visit every corner and highlight every geographical detail of the ‘Bel Paese.’ The Giro covers the barren but beautiful roads of the south, climbs into the steep central Apennine hills, skirts the long coastlines, passes through historical towns and villages, and then high into the mountains in the third and decisive week of racing.