The teams of the 107th Giro d’Italia gathered in Torino on Thursday night to greet the press and the tifosi.
The first team to fly its flag was Israel-Premier Tech. Two Canadians are in the squad: Michael Woods riding his third Giro, and Riley Pickrell making his Grand Tour debut at 22.
🇮🇱 The first team to step on the podium is @IsraelPremTech! #Giro pic.twitter.com/y9b8k0dSNq
— Giro d’Italia (@giroditalia) May 2, 2024
The organizers consider Woods to be one of five contenders for the blue mountains jersey, along with Juanpe Lopez, Michael Storer, Koen Bouwman and Filippo Zana.
💙 MAGLIA AZZURRA | 2024 CONTENDERS 💙
🇮🇹 Filippo Zana
🇳🇱 Koen Bouwman
🇪🇸 @juanpelopez97
🇦🇺 @mjstorer_au
🇨🇦 @rusty_woods#GirodItalia @BancaMediolanum pic.twitter.com/F71ZMJufw2— Giro d’Italia (@giroditalia) May 1, 2024
Some teams wore special Giro kits. Intermarché-Wanty was clad in new livery that honored its sponsor Vini Fantini.
The Pink Armada of EF Education-Easypost traditionally changes its duds for the Giro. On its website, the team describes the 2024 edition as “an homage to Italian bike racing culture…a classy black strip with yellow and pink emblems that celebrate the nation that is home to these beautiful, brutal races.”
Tadej Pogačar is the clear favourite to win the maglia rosa. His UAE-Emirates squad isn’t as strong as the gang he’ll bring to the Tour de France, but it still has some heft.
Ineos got that old feeling again after cracking UAE-Emirates’ Spaniard Juan Ayuso at the Tour de Romandie and winning the race for their man Carlos Rodriguez. The British team thinks it has the formula to overcome Pogačar in Italy.
For a guy who has been in a Grand Tour top-10 twice in eight tries, Australian Ben O’Connor has a lot of people talking runner-up or at least podium. His Decathlon-AG2R-La Mondiale team contains the Paret-Peintre brothers.
There was, of course, some capering from Lupo Wolfie, the Giro mascot.
The Giro begins on Saturday in Venaria Reale on the outskirts of Torino.
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