CYCLING guru JOHN TREVORROW checks out the chances of the big names who are tackling the Tour of Italy – and says an Australian win would not surprise:
THE Giro d’Italia, which started at the weekend with an 8.6 km individual time trial a is my favourite race. I rode it exactly 40 years ago and I’ve covered quite a few for my home town newspaper, the Geelong Advertiser, over the years. This year because of Covid I will be, like many of you, glued to SBS each night watching the live coverage.
It is always a tough course with giant mountains in the Alps and Dolomites that are much steeper than those in the Tour de France. But it’s the fans that really make the race so special. Whereas the Tour de France has become the bucket list cycling event to watch, the Giro attracts the real lovers of cycling.
Eight Australians will line up amongst the 184 starters with young Jai Hindley the standout for a chance at the overall victory
Last year the young West Australian burst onto the world scene delivering a brilliant overall performance finishing second, frustratingly close to overall victory. The reigning Herald Sun Tour Champion wore the Maglia Rosa, the prestigious pink leaders jersey, into the final stage only to have it snatched away by young Welshman Tao Geoghegan Hart by a mere 39 seconds.
Unfortunately Hindley’s preparation has been hindered by illness and a crash that forced him out of the Tour of the Alps but he is a class rider and his DSM team are fully supportive. Two of his strongest team mates are Aussies, Chris Hamilton from Bendigo riding his third Giro and fellow West Australian Michael Storer, an excellent climber who has ridden three Vueltas (Tour of Spain).
Australian team BikeExchange have four Aussies in their eight man team but they will be focused on supporting Englishman Simon Yates.
Embed from Getty ImagesMichael Hepburn is an experienced domestique riding his fifth Giro and will be an integral part of the engine room that will control the race on the flatter stages. National road champion Cameron Meyer is riding his sixth Giro and he will be a key rider in keeping Yates in the best position in the flatter stages. South Australian Callum Scotson will also be strong on the flatter stages but will be crucial in the smaller climbs. Nick Schultz from Brisbane is riding his first Giro but has ridden four Vueltas and his strong climbing ability will be very important in the final week.
The bookies have Yates second favourite behind Colombian Egan Bernal but he is my pick for the overall title.
Yates has unfinished business at the Giro. In 2018 he dominated the race but cracked on the final mountain stage where Chris Froome put on one of the most amazing displays ever seen to snatch victory. Last year Yates started favourite after a dominating performance in the Tirreno – Adriatico lead up race but was pulled out of the race with Covid in the first week followed by the rest of the team a few days later.
Yates’ biggest threat will come from the powerful UK squad Ineos Grenadiers. Although Geoghegan Hart, the young defending champion, isn’t on the start list, 2019 Tour de France winner Egan Bernal, riding his first Giro, will be perfectly suited to this year’s course. But Bernal, whose 2020 season was ruined by a nagging back injury, hasn’t done any of the lead up races, deciding to do altitude training instead. If he is found wanting then Ineos also have rising young Russian star Pavel Sivakov who Geelong fans may remember when he finished second in the Cadel Evans Road Race last year. The pocket rocket Caleb Ewan will be out to add to his three previous stage wins in the Giro and although his form has been a bit patchy so far this season, he is the best sprinter in the race and his Lotto Soudal team do not have a rider who will feature in the GC so it will be all about Caleb.
Caleb feels that because most of the teams only have limited lead-out trains there is the potential for plenty of drama in the finales. Ewan said in a pre-race press conference: “All those guys will be waiting until the last minutes to do their lead out because you can’t start from 10 kilometres out with three guys. If there’s a lot of teams trying to do the same thing, then it’s going to be chaotic.
One of Caleb’s main rivals will be Dutchman Dylan Groenewegen who will be having his first race back from a nine month suspension for causing the horrific crash in last year’s Tour of Poland where compatriot Fabio Jakobson almost lost his life.
Deceunink – Quick-step have a three pronged attack with young superstar Remco
Evenepoel having his first start since breaking his pelvis in the Tour of Lombardy one day classic last August. The bookies have him third favourite but the 21 year old Belgian has never ridden a grand tour and although he is a cycling freak I would be surprised if he makes the podium. His Portuguese teammate Joao Almeida however is a definite chance for overall victory. The 22 year old was the revelation of last year’s Giro wearing the pink jersey for most of the event and finished fourth overall. Then there is Italian Fausto Masnada who finished ninth last year while supporting Almeida and showed strong climbing form to finish third in last week’s Tour de Romandie.
Spaniard Mikel Landa is the undisputed leader of Bahrain Victorious. His grand tour pedigree is impressive finishing third in the Giro in 2015 and 2019 plus top 10 in the last four Tours de France.
Russian Aleksandr Vlasov will lead the strong Astana Premier Tech team. He was tipped to be a threat last year but crashed out early. A fine second overall in Paris Nice shows that he is in fine form.
Englishman Hugh Carthy will lead the EF Education-Nippo squad and is a genuine threat. The aggressive Englishman finished third in last year’s Vuelta and has shown good climbing form in the recent Tour of the Alps.
Italian superstar Vincenzo Nibali is a surprise starter after fracturing his wrist in a training crash only three weeks ago. Nibali is the highest credential rider in the field with overall wins in all three Grand Tours including two Giros. Nibali’s best days may be behind him but his attacking style should light up the race. But I can’t see him making the final podium.
Jumbo Visma have given Kiwi George Bennett his first tilt at leading the team in a grand tour. The likeable New Zealander is a brilliant climber that is usually setting the pace for Primoz Roglic on the biggest climbs. This will be his 15th grand Tour but first one as leader.
This year’s Giro is a classic course with eight mountain finishes including the brutal finish to Monte Zoncolan and a serious gravel challenge before a challenging final week finishing with a 30km individual time trial in Milan.
I spoke to Team BikeExchange sports director Matt White as he was doing a recon of stage 11 from Perugia to Montalcino with Simon Yates. “it is a beautiful stage but sketchy as hell,” White said. “They were still working on the four gravel sections and I just hope they get it a bit better than it looked today. The second section is nearly 12 km long with ramps of 15%. It’s brutal and some riders will lose a lot of time.”
JOHN TREVORROW is a multiple Australian champion road racer and Olympian who has been doing media commentary at the Tour de France for more than 20 years.
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