The Giro d’Italia is considered the second most important cycling race in the world alongside the Spanish Vuelta – behind the Tour de France. Due to the tight schedule, an overall victory in both classics is hardly possible even for the top professional cyclists. Has the route of the Giro been adapted specifically so that crowd favorite Tadej Pogacar can compete in both Italy and France?
The organizers of the Giro d’Italia have presented the route for the upcoming edition. Remarkable: Top stars who want to take part in the Tour de France a few weeks later could definitely aim for the title double in 2024, as the altitude profile has been reduced by a whopping 20 percent compared to the previous year. The overall length is also shorter than before.
Early mountain finishes and the two time trial stages could also benefit cyclists like Tadej Pogacar. The Slovenian is considered one of the big challengers of Tour winner Jonas Vingegaard, so until recently it was not expected that he would also want to fight for the title at the Giro.
Giro route offers Pogacar the “chance” for the double
Race director Mauro Vegni vehemently contradicted speculation that the Giro route profile was specifically adapted to ensure the presence of superstar Pogacar. “The route was not designed for Pogacar. We simply changed our philosophy on how we design the Giro route,” he told Cyclingnews.com. Vegni added: “But this track gives Pogacar the chance to do the double.”
It is still unclear whether last year’s winner Primoz Roglic will aim for the pink jersey again. The Slovenian is moving from Jumbo-Visma to Bora-hansgrohe for the new season. His stated goal: to win the Tour de France for the first time, regardless of the Giro’s new route profile.
The three-week Giro d’Italia begins on May 4, 2024 in the Piedmont metropolis of Turin – just eight weeks later the Tour de France will also stop there – and after three stages leads down to Naples before moving to the Adriatic and from there leads further north into the Alps. The overall winner can then travel to the capital Rome in the pink jersey.