2010 Giro d'Italia, Stage 1 to Stage 11
Encyclopedia
The 2010 Giro d'Italia
began on 8 May, and stage 11 occurred on 19 May. The race began in Amsterdam
in the Netherlands
with an individual time trial
and two flat stages before transferring to Italy. The transfer made an uncommonly early rest day in a Grand Tour
, coming just three days into the three-week race. Many crashes occurred in the stages in the Netherlands, leading to some unexpected big time gaps before the transfer to Italy. Three different riders led the race after the three days in the Netherlands.
The first stage in Italy was a team time trial
, the fifth successive year the discipline has featured in the Giro. This stage transferred the race lead to a fourth rider in as many stages, Vincenzo Nibali
. Though many of the stages in the first half of the Giro were flat or undulating, and theoretically fairly straightforward, there were repeated large time gaps from day to day. The first mountain stage was stage 8, which concluded with a long climb to Monte Terminillo
.
Stage 11 was the longest in the race, and featured another surprise, a 50-strong breakaway which greatly shook up the overall standings before the more mountainous second half of the Giro
. Alexander Vinokourov
had held the race lead prior to that stage, but lost it to Richie Porte
, who figured into the winning break.
(Netherlands
), 8.4 km (5.2 mi) (individual time trial
)
The Giro opened with a short, flat time trial in Amsterdam, the ninth time that the Giro has begun outside Italy. There were a number of tight turns in the course, which began at the Museumplein
and ended at the Olympic Stadium, making for a stage that favored time trial specialists.
Intermittent rain made the time trial difficult for various riders throughout the day. 's Andriy Hryvko
, the five-time defending Ukrainian national time trial champion, set the first real time to beat early on the day, clocking in at 10'31". Hryvko was the 14th man to leave the starthouse, and his time held up until the 60th man, 's Gustav Larsson, time trial silver medalist from the most recent world championships and Olympics, was six seconds better at 10'25".
An hour and a half later, the day's biggest surprise came when Brent Bookwalter from Cadel Evans
' , riding in his first Grand Tour, put up 10'20" as the day's new best time. The only man to do better on the day was captain and time trial specialist Bradley Wiggins
, stopping the clock in 10'18" to earn the first pink jersey. Of the Giro's overall favorites, Evans finished best-placed, on the same time as Bookwalter for third place.
Stage 1 result and General Classification after Stage 1
(Netherlands), 209 km (129.9 mi)
The first road race of the 2010 Giro was flat, starting in Amsterdam and ending in Utrecht. Two very small climbs occurred shortly before the midpoint of the stage, to decide the first wearer of the green jersey. The roads leading into the finish in Utrecht twist and turn repeatedly.
There were a large number of crashes during the stage, which commentators and team managers alike described as unprecedented. The course was noted to have a lot of street furniture
on it, which compounded with riders' nerves as the number of crashes mounted higher and higher to make the day of racing more perilous.
The day's breakaway numbered four – Paul Voss
, Rick Flens
, Stefano Pirazzi, and Mauro Facci
. , at the head of the peloton, allowed them a little over 5 minutes' advantage before they set to making the chase. One of the day's massive crashes occurred with 40 km (24.9 mi) for the peloton, bringing down around 30 riders, including race leader Bradley Wiggins
. Around this time, Flens tried to solo from the leading group, but the peloton caught him with 24 km (14.9 mi) left to race. Another huge crash took place 7.2 km (4.5 mi) from the finish line, depleting the leading group to only 58 riders and leaving Wiggins and Carlos Sastre
, among others, 37 seconds back at the finish. The stage ended in a sprint finish, as expected, which was won by Tyler Farrar
. Cadel Evans
took over the leaders jersey.
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|General Classification after Stage 2
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(Netherlands), 224 km (139.2 mi)
Starting again from Amsterdam, stage 3 included portions dipping below sea level. The route headed south from Amsterdam along the North Sea
, crossing through the islands of Zeeland
before ending in Middelburg
on Walcheren
.
Crosswinds blowing from the coast fractured the peloton early on. The day's breakaway, comprising Olivier Kaisen
, Jérôme Pineau
, and Tom Stamsnijder
was caught well before the end of the stage. It appeared for much of the day that Damiano Cunego
would lose over a minute to the race's overall favorites after he missed a selection early on and rode much of the stage behind them. His group also contained André Greipel
and Greg Henderson
, however, and their teams made an effective chase to catch back up to race leader Cadel Evans
' group.
With 30 km (18.6 mi) left to race, a major crash occurred, taking down most of , including Henderson and former race leader Bradley Wiggins
. The crash also brought down Christian Vandevelde
, who was forced to retire. It made for a crucial selection, as 29 riders at the head of the peloton were able to avoid it and finished 46 seconds better than Evans' group. Greipel was present in the leading group for the sprint finish, but he was unable to respond to the sprint kick from 's Wouter Weylandt
, who easily took the stage win. The best-placed rider in the general classification in the leading group was Alexander Vinokourov
, who became the third rider in as many days to pull on the pink jersey.
Despite the course's extremely flat profile, large time gaps resulted from the stage. Alessandro Petacchi
and darkhorse overall contender Domenico Pozzovivo
missed an early selection and never recovered, finishing eight minutes back along with riders like Marzio Bruseghin
, Filippo Pozzato
, and Gilberto Simoni
. Five riders including Wiggins lost four minutes, and the last group on the road lost nearly 15 minutes.
||
|General Classification after Stage 3
|}
to Cuneo
, 32.5 km (20.2 mi) (team time trial
)
After the transfer to Italy, which took the riders to Savigliano
in the Piedmont
, the first stage on Italian soil was, as it had been since 2006
, a team time trial
. The route was on a slight uphill for its duration, which was atypical for a team time trial. The course headed south on mainly straight roads from Savigliano to Cuneo
, with intermediate time checks in Genola and Centallo
.
The fourth team to leave the starthouse, Cadel Evans
' , set the early time to beat, bettering the teams before them by nearly a minute. Their time of 37'58" stood for close to an hour, with the teams that followed them failing to beat provisional second place team 's time of 38'40". The first team faster than BMC was , with Mikhail Ignatiev pulling his teammates to a time of 37'04", eventually fourth at the end of the day. Stage favorites took the course just after the Russian team and brought five riders home in 36'50" to take over the top spot. After and both turned in solid rides, at 37'23" and 37'15" respectively, another favorite in was next on the road. The team rode without one of its captains, Christian Vandevelde
, who had been forced to retire from the Giro in the last stage in the Netherlands after crashing. His remaining teammates had wanted to dedicate their prospective victory to him, but Vandevelde's presence proved sorely missed as the team managed only 37'26" and eighth on the day.
The last four teams to start were , , , and , with the pink jersey hanging in the balance as the four teams had riders tightly bunched in the overall standings from the previous stage. Liquigas-Doimo had all nine riders together as they entered Cuneo, while other teams lost riders early and often in the stage. Six crossed the finish line together in 36'37", supplanting Team Sky for best on the day. Team HTC-Columbia and Team Saxo Bank both failed to top Liquigas-Doimo in their rides, meaning Vincenzo Nibali
stood to be the fourth new race leader in a row pending current race leader Alexander Vinokourov
and team Astana's ride. The Kazakh team lost Alexsandr Dyachenko
, Valentin Iglinskiy, and Enrico Gasparotto
early in their ride, having only six riders together for most of the stage. Roman Kireyev
fell off with 3 kilometers left, and Gorazd Štangelj
also lost the pace well before the finish line. Štangelj rode back to his teammates the first time he came off the back, but he lost the pace again in the final kilometer. A visibly upset Vinokourov had to sit up and wait for him, costing the team the seconds they needed to keep Vinokourov in the pink jersey. Nibali became the new race leader.
to Novi Ligure
, 168 km (104.4 mi)
After another transfer, the fifth stage was flat, entering Liguria
, with two short climbs occurring about two-thirds of the way into the stage. The stage paid tribute to Fausto Coppi
, passing through his hometown of Castellania
and ending in Novi Ligure, where he lived later in his life. Novi Ligure was also the hometown of Costante Girardengo
, also honored in this stage. The riders saw the finish line in Novi Ligure twice, taking a finishing circuit in the town.
A four-man breakaway distinguished themselves after 25 km (15.5 mi). The group consisted of Yukiya Arashiro
, Jérôme Pineau
, Julien Fouchard, and mountains classification leader Paul Voss
, after a move instigated by Arashiro. Voss sat up after the second small climb on the course, having taken first-place points on both. The group's maximum time gap was four minutes, at the Passo Coppi in Castellania. set to making the chase, but for a while they were the only team chasing, meaning the time gap did not fall very fast – it was still 2'50" by the 30 km (18.6 mi) to go mark.
The teams of the race's other premier sprinters joined the chase in the finishing circuit in Novi Ligure. With 5 km (3.1 mi) to go, Arashiro, Pineau, and Fouchard held a tenuous lead of under one minute. The chase continued into the final kilometer, and the three managed to stay away by a margin of 4 seconds over the hard-charging sprinters at the head of the peloton. Pineau was the winner, over Fouchard in second. Reactions to the failure to catch the breakaway varied, from finger-pointing to complaints over the Giro directors' descriptions of the finishing circuit to simply crediting the leading trio for their combativity. With the win, Pineau took over the lead in the points classification, earning the red jersey for stage six. There was no significant change to the race's overall standings.
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|General Classification after Stage 5
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to Marina di Carrara
, 166 km (103.1 mi)
Another transfer took the riders to the Fidenza
in the region of Emilia-Romagna
. Stage 6 was categorized intermediate, going over the Passo del Brattello after 78 km (48.5 mi) and the Spolverina and the Bedizzano climbs shortly before the finish.
After 45 km (28 mi) of racing, Matthew Lloyd
and Rubens Bertogliati
became the day's signature break. Since they posed no threat to the overall standings, with Lloyd at 11'13" back of race leader Vincenzo Nibali
the better-placed of the two, the peloton was content to allow them a big lead. Their maximum advantage was six minutes, before the ascent of the day's second climb, when a five-man chase group formed. The five cut into the leaders' advantage very quickly at first, but they were unable to make the bridge, being eventually swept back up by the peloton. On the ascent of the Bedizzano, 11 km (6.8 mi) from the finish line, Lloyd shed Bertogliati and rode the rest of the way to the stage win on his own. He was first over all three of the day's climbs, and so took the green jersey as mountains classification leader. Bertogliati was very nearly absorbed by the peloton in the stage's final kilometer, staying out in front of them by only 9 seconds to hold on to second place. Danilo Hondo
led the peloton across the line and momentarily thought he had won the stage, lifting his arms as he crossed the line.
Paolo Tiralongo
, who had been in tenth overall and was considered a key support rider for Alexander Vinokourov
, crashed at the 76 km (47.2 mi) mark. He was taken off the road in an ambulance, but was not seriously hurt. squad leader Guillaume Bonnafond
crashed at the same time and suffered a gash near his right eye. Both riders retired from the Giro.
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|General Classification after Stage 6
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, 215 km (133.6 mi)
Stage 7 was also an intermediate stage, beginning in the same city as the last one ended. It was flat for the first 100 km (62.1 mi) before a jagged second half. The race entered Tuscany
in this stage, visiting the Passo del Rospatoio and the Poggio Civitella before the finish. The finish came on unpaved roads that are used yearly by the Italian semi-classic Montepaschi Strade Bianche.
The beginning of the stage was ridden at a very high pace, keeping any breakaway attempts in check. After 60 km (37.3 mi), Nicki Sørensen
and Rick Flens
escaped. The flat first half of the stage let them get an advantage of over nine minutes at one point, but the hilly second half combined with the day's heavy rain took its toll on them. At the 60 km (37.3 mi) to go mark, a selection occurred in the pink jersey group, and those left behind were never able to regain the pace. The race's main overall contenders were in the first group, including Alexander Vinokourov
, Cadel Evans
, Damiano Cunego
, Stefano Garzelli
, and the duo of Ivan Basso
and race leader Vincenzo Nibali
. Notably left behind were riders who had previously been considered contenders, like Bradley Wiggins
and Carlos Sastre
, who finished the day 4'30" and 5'20" respectively back of the stage winner.
The leaders brought back Sørensen and Flens with 41 km (25.5 mi) remaining in the stage. The first section of unpaved dirt roads (strada bianche is Italian for "white roads," referring to such areas) took its toll on Nibali, when one of his teammates crashed and subsequently brought him down with him. Nibali needed a bike change, and by the time he got one, Evans, Vinokourov, Cunego, and others had gotten away and were a minute and a half ahead. The move had been instigated by Vinokourov, and he stood to gain the most from it being the highest placed in the overall standings. The rain continued throughout the stage and made the dirt roads muddy. The cold and wet weather combined with the poor road surface caused Vinokourov to question after the stage whether such roads should be used in a stage race at all.
Vinokourov, Cunego, and Evans finished together and contested a sprint for the stage win. Cunego went first, after a hairpin left-hand turn, but Evans had the better timing and crossed the line 2 seconds ahead of his companions. Vinokourov re-assumed the pink jersey.
||
|General Classification after Stage 7
|}
, 189 km (117.4 mi)
This was the Giro's first mountain stage, concluding with a climb to Monte Terminillo
. Prior to the Terminillo, the course undulated roughly, visiting two other categorized climbs and other rises in elevation. The Terminillo climb took 16.1 km (10 mi), gaining 1172 m (3,845.1 ft) of vertical elevation for an average gradient of 7.3%. The steepest stretches of the climb reach 12%.
The day began with sprint great Alessandro Petacchi
and 2009 youth classification runner-up Francesco Masciarelli
both abandoning the race. Petacchi had been suffering from bronchitis and had not been adequately recovering from one day to the next.
There were a few breakaway attempts before Monte Nibbio, the first categorized climb of the day, but none got away as the peloton hit the ascent of that climb together. As the summit neared, mountains classification leader Matthew Lloyd
attacked and was first to the line to pad his lead in that classification. Several other riders followed him, leading to a split in the peloton. A short while later, with over 100 km (62.1 mi) left to race, 17 riders from 15 teams formed the day's defining breakaway. and handled the pacemaking at the front of the first large group, keeping the breakaway's time advantage to under three minutes. When and joined the chase, the gap fell precipitously.
At the front of the race, with 14 km (8.7 mi) to go, Chris Anker Sørensen
tried to leave his breakaway companions and solo to victory. He was easily covered by Simone Stortoni, and the two rode the next eight kilometers together ahead of the main field. The pink jersey group had absorbed the other riders from the 17-strong break, and a few riders from the pink jersey group who did not pose overall threats were able to break free and finish ahead of them. Among them was 's Xavier Tondó
, who had stayed with his team leader Carlos Sastre
on previous days but had been specifically released by Sastre to ride his own race at this point, as Sastre continued to struggle.
Though Sørensen seemed to be in physical distress for most of the final 14 km (8.7 mi), he was able to shed Stortoni rather easily with 6 km (3.7 mi) and stayed out front for the stage win. The overall standings were reshuffled somewhat, as David Millar
, Linus Gerdemann
, and Thomas Rohregger
, who had all been in the top ten overnight, were dropped on the climb and lost time. This made for the odd result of Richie Porte
and Marco Pinotti
also being dropped and losing time, but actually moving up overall, since they did not lose as much time.
to Cava de' Tirreni
, 188 km (116.8 mi)
This stage was flat, without any climbs giving points for the mountains classification. The Giro reached its southernmost point in this stage, Cava de' Tirreni
in Campania
.
After 9 km (5.6 mi) had been covered, Giampaolo Cheula
, Tom Stamsnijder
, and Michael Barry
slipped away from the peloton along with breakaway specialist Mikhail Ignatiev. , eager to set up their leader André Greipel
for a prospective mass sprint, paced the main field for most of the stage and kept the leaders' maximum advantage at around three minutes for most of the stage. The rain on the day was heavy, leaving standing puddles that sprayed riders in the peloton in the face as their bicycles rode through it. also came forward later in the day, and by 30 km (18.6 mi) to go, a split occurred in the peloton because of the pace Garmin forced in efforts to catch the break. Cadel Evans
and Carlos Sastre
were both initially left behind – Evans made his way back to the leading group and did not lose any time, but Sastre again lost out and led the second group across the line 1'49" back of the stage winner.
Greipel himself was nearly cracked by the pace in the stage's final kilometers. While he did finish with the leading group, he was just 19th on the day, not contesting the sprint. Race leader Alexander Vinokourov
was unexpectedly the first rider to try to sprint to the finish line, hoping for one of the time bonuses available to the first three finishers. Second-place man Evans marked this move and the two were briefly away in the stage's final kilometer, but they were overhauled by the sprint trains which came up behind them. 's Matthew Goss
was trying to lead Greipel out for the sprint, but when he saw that the German was not at the front of the field with 400 m (1,312.3 ft) to go, he decided to race for the line himself, and won the stage.
||
|General Classification after Stage 9
|}
to Bitonto
, 220 km (136.7 mi)
This stage was also categorized flat, though it had a few short hills, including the categorized Valico dell'Imbandima after 94 km (58.4 mi). It headed east into Apulia
in preparation for a northward run to the Dolomites
later in the race.
This was a largely straightforward day of racing. A three-rider breakaway, comprising Hubert Dupont
, Charles Wegelius, and Dario Cataldo
, formed early on in the stage. They attained a maximum advantage of seven minutes, as the peloton took a relaxed approach to the first few hours of racing, at last enjoying nice weather. When and came forward to make the chase, the time gap fell precipitously. The roads into Bitonto were very long and straight, meaning the peloton could see the breakaway ahead of them at times when they still had a deficit of over a minute to them. With 16.7 km (10.4 mi) left to race, Dupont, Wegelius, and Cataldo were brought back. 's top sprinter Greg Henderson
crashed and took several kilometers to get back to the leading group, leaving their sprint train disorganized. It fell to and to organize the sprint, and their top sprinters were first on the day, with points classification leader Tyler Farrar
from Garmin th victor. After the stage, Farrar praised the leadout he had received from Julian Dean
, as it not only gave him the perfect acceleration on the slight uphill finish, it also split the field, as only seven other riders finished with the same time. There was no significant change to the overall standings with the day's results.
||
|General Classification after Stage 10
|}
to L'Aquila
, 256 km (159.1 mi)
This was the longest stage of the 2010 Giro. It was categorized intermediate, with a hilly profile including three categorized climbs. It was the first north-bound stage of the Giro, going to L'Aquila
in the region of Abruzzo
, visiting some of the area damaged by the 2009 L'Aquila earthquake
.
A breakaway formed starting at the 20 km (12.4 mi) mark of the stage. Little by little, more and more riders came clear into the leading group. There were more than 50 riders in it at one point; the only team absent from the leading group was , and most teams had three or more riders present. This group took a maximum advantage on the pink jersey of over 20 minutes. The overall favorites left in the pink jersey group either didn't know who was in the leading group or miscalculated how much advantage to give them, because sixth-place man and best young rider Richie Porte
was among those in the escape, as were squad leaders Carlos Sastre
and Bradley Wiggins
, who had fallen out of contention days before but now suddenly stood to be right back in it.
The leading group worked cohesively for much of the stage. , , , and rode a hard tempo in the group since they stood to have riders high-placed in the overall standings should they gain significant time on the day. Some riders, in particular teammates of Stefano Garzelli
, Michele Scarponi
and Cadel Evans
, were called back to the pink jersey group to try to help make the pace. and were both decimated by riders abandoning the race at this point, as only five riders remained for both squads at the end of the day. This made it difficult for them to organize the chase effort. For a while, , , , and all mounted a coordinated chase, and the time gap to the leaders fell from 20 minutes to 13 by the summit of the Capo di Valle, the day's last climb. While this was still ample time to allow the stage winner to come from the front group, it figured to be whittled down to 7 or 8 minutes by the finish since the remaining terrain in the stage was mostly flat. However, right at the summit of the climb, stopped sending riders to the front of the pink jersey group, essentially giving up on the chase. This caused the other three teams to abandon the chase as well, and the time gap stayed right at 13 minutes to the end of the stage.
The leading group fragmented a little as riders attacked for the stage win. 's Evgeni Petrov secured his first victory in seven years with a well-timed attack in the stage's final kilometer. He came home 5 seconds ahead of Dario Cataldo
and Sastre, and 7 seconds over a group of other riders from the break. Forty riders finished scattered ahead of the pink jersey group. Scarponi, Garzelli, Vincenzo Nibali
, and Damiano Cunego
gained three seconds against overnight race leader Alexander Vinokourov
, but they all lost the better part of 13 minutes to the leading group, and all fell from the top ten in the overall standings. Porte became the new race leader, adding the pink jersey to the white he had previously been holding.
and blamed each other for the pink jersey group's errors on the day. Vinokourov felt that since his team was depleted and that Nibali and Ivan Basso
stood a better chance to win the Giro than he did anyway that should have taken up the chase. The Italian team, for their part, felt that since had held the pink jersey at the time that it was on them to organize the chase.
A 51-rider group, including most of the Giro's remaining sprinters, finished 46'31" back on the day. This put them at risk of being removed from the race, since they were outside the time limit based on the stage winner's time. Race organizers chose not to eliminate such a large group of riders, but they assessed each of them a 25 point penalty in the points classification. This affected Tyler Farrar
, who had a 32-point lead in the classification reduced to just seven, opening up the competition.
||
|General Classification after Stage 11
|}
2010 Giro d'Italia
The 2010 Giro d'Italia was the 93rd edition of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. The Giro started off in Amsterdam on 8 May and stayed in the Netherlands for three stages, before leaving the country...
began on 8 May, and stage 11 occurred on 19 May. The race began in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
with an individual time trial
Individual time trial
An individual time trial is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock . There are also track-based time trials where riders compete in velodromes, and team time trials...
and two flat stages before transferring to Italy. The transfer made an uncommonly early rest day in a Grand Tour
Grand Tour (cycling)
In road bicycle racing, a Grand Tour refers to one of the three major European professional cycling stage races:* Tour de France – Tour of France , held in July* Giro d'Italia – Tour of Italy , held in May...
, coming just three days into the three-week race. Many crashes occurred in the stages in the Netherlands, leading to some unexpected big time gaps before the transfer to Italy. Three different riders led the race after the three days in the Netherlands.
The first stage in Italy was a team time trial
Team time trial
A team time trial is a road-based bicycle race in which teams of cyclists race against the clock .Teams start at equal intervals, usually two, three or four minutes apart...
, the fifth successive year the discipline has featured in the Giro. This stage transferred the race lead to a fourth rider in as many stages, Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who rides UCI ProTeam . Born near the Strait of Messina, Nibali's nickname is the "shark of the strait" or simply "the shark." His first major win came at the 2006 GP Ouest-France, where he beat an impressive field on a tough course...
. Though many of the stages in the first half of the Giro were flat or undulating, and theoretically fairly straightforward, there were repeated large time gaps from day to day. The first mountain stage was stage 8, which concluded with a long climb to Monte Terminillo
Monte Terminillo
Monte Terminillo is a massif in the Monti Reatini, part of the Abruzzese Apennines range in central Italy. It is located some 20 km from Rieti and 100 km from Rome and has a highest altitude of ....
.
Stage 11 was the longest in the race, and featured another surprise, a 50-strong breakaway which greatly shook up the overall standings before the more mountainous second half of the Giro
2010 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21
Stage 12 of the 2010 Giro d'Italia took place on 20 May in Città Sant'Angelo, and the race concluded with stage 21 in Verona on 30 May. Seven of the last ten stages in the race contained mountain climbs, including the uphill individual time trial to Plan de Corones four days before the end of the...
. Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolaevich Vinokourov, also written Alexandre Vinokourov, is an ethnically Russian Kazakhstani professional road bicycle racer who currently competes with the UCI ProTeam Astana...
had held the race lead prior to that stage, but lost it to Richie Porte
Richie Porte
Richard "Richie" Porte is an Australian professional road bicycle racer on . In his first year in the UCI Pro Tour, Porte has been a consistent performer in the General classification at several stage races....
, who figured into the winning break.
| Legend | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Denotes the leader of the General classification |  |
Denotes the leader of the Mountains classification Mountains classification in the Giro d'Italia The mountains classification in the Giro d'Italia is a secondary classification. In this classification, points are awarded to the leading riders over designated climbs. Most climbs are sorted into one of three scales based on difficulty and its position on that day's stage... |
 |
Denotes the leader of the Points classification | |
Denotes the leader of the Young rider classification Young rider classification in the Giro d'Italia Since 1976, The Giro d'Italia has had a young rider classification. The leader in this classification wears the maglia bianca . The classification is determined by the best overall time, but only young cyclists were in the competition.... |
| s.t. indicates that the rider crossed the finish line in the same group as the one receiving the time above him, and was therefore credited with the same finishing time. | |||
Stage 1
8 May 2010 — AmsterdamAmsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
(Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
), 8.4 km (5.2 mi) (individual time trial
Individual time trial
An individual time trial is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock . There are also track-based time trials where riders compete in velodromes, and team time trials...
)
The Giro opened with a short, flat time trial in Amsterdam, the ninth time that the Giro has begun outside Italy. There were a number of tight turns in the course, which began at the Museumplein
Museumplein
The Museumplein is a square in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The square is called "Museum Square" because four museums are located around the square: the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, the Stedelijk Museum, and the Diamond Museum...
and ended at the Olympic Stadium, making for a stage that favored time trial specialists.
Intermittent rain made the time trial difficult for various riders throughout the day. 's Andriy Hryvko
Andriy Hryvko
Andriy Grivko is a Ukrainian racing cyclist for . He competed at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the road race, in which he did not finish, and the individual time trial, where he finished 31st.-Palmarès:200520062008-External links:...
, the five-time defending Ukrainian national time trial champion, set the first real time to beat early on the day, clocking in at 10'31". Hryvko was the 14th man to leave the starthouse, and his time held up until the 60th man, 's Gustav Larsson, time trial silver medalist from the most recent world championships and Olympics, was six seconds better at 10'25".
An hour and a half later, the day's biggest surprise came when Brent Bookwalter from Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
' , riding in his first Grand Tour, put up 10'20" as the day's new best time. The only man to do better on the day was captain and time trial specialist Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE is a British professional track and road bicycle racer, currently riding for Team Sky. Wiggins' career began on the track, where he specialised in the pursuit and madison disciplines....
, stopping the clock in 10'18" to earn the first pink jersey. Of the Giro's overall favorites, Evans finished best-placed, on the same time as Bookwalter for third place.
Stage 1 result and General Classification after Stage 1
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
10' 18" | |
| 2 | + 2" | ||
| 3 | + 2" | ||
| 4 | + 5" | ||
| 5 | + 5" | ||
| 6 | |
+ 5" | |
| 7 | + 6" | ||
| 8 | + 7" | ||
| 9 | + 9" | ||
| 10 | + 9" |
Stage 2
9 May 2010 — Amsterdam (Netherlands) to UtrechtUtrecht (city)
Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
(Netherlands), 209 km (129.9 mi)
The first road race of the 2010 Giro was flat, starting in Amsterdam and ending in Utrecht. Two very small climbs occurred shortly before the midpoint of the stage, to decide the first wearer of the green jersey. The roads leading into the finish in Utrecht twist and turn repeatedly.
There were a large number of crashes during the stage, which commentators and team managers alike described as unprecedented. The course was noted to have a lot of street furniture
Street furniture
Street furniture is a collective term for objects and pieces of equipment installed on streets and roads for various purposes, including traffic barriers,...
on it, which compounded with riders' nerves as the number of crashes mounted higher and higher to make the day of racing more perilous.
The day's breakaway numbered four – Paul Voss
Paul Voss
Paul Voss is a German professional road bicycle racer for Endura Racing.-Palmarès:20102011- External links :...
, Rick Flens
Rick Flens
Rick Flens is a Dutch professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam Rabobank.-Palmares:2006...
, Stefano Pirazzi, and Mauro Facci
Mauro Facci
Mauro Facci is an Italian professional road bicycle racer.- Victories :20042005-Notes and references:...
. , at the head of the peloton, allowed them a little over 5 minutes' advantage before they set to making the chase. One of the day's massive crashes occurred with 40 km (24.9 mi) for the peloton, bringing down around 30 riders, including race leader Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE is a British professional track and road bicycle racer, currently riding for Team Sky. Wiggins' career began on the track, where he specialised in the pursuit and madison disciplines....
. Around this time, Flens tried to solo from the leading group, but the peloton caught him with 24 km (14.9 mi) left to race. Another huge crash took place 7.2 km (4.5 mi) from the finish line, depleting the leading group to only 58 riders and leaving Wiggins and Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
, among others, 37 seconds back at the finish. The stage ended in a sprint finish, as expected, which was won by Tyler Farrar
Tyler Farrar
Tyler Farrar is an American professional road racing cyclist since 2003.-Cycling career:Farrar started racing at 13, and rode for in 2003, in 2004, and in 2006 and 2007. In April 2006 he crashed near the finish of the Circuit de la Sarthe and broke his collarbone and missed most of the season...
. Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
took over the leaders jersey.
Stage 2 Result
|
s.t. | ||
| 6 | s.t. | ||
| 7 | s.t. | ||
| 8 | s.t. | ||
| 9 | s.t. | ||
| 10 | Colnago-CSF Inox | s.t. |
||
|General Classification after Stage 2
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | |
+ 1" | |
| 3 |
|
| align="right"| + 3"
|-
| 4
|
| align="right"| + 3"
|-
| 5
|
|
| align="right"| + 4"
|-
| 6
|
|
| align="right"| + 7"
|-
| 7
|
|
| align="right"| + 8"
|-
| 8
|
|
| align="right"| + 9"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 10"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 13"
|}
|}
Stage 3
10 May 2010 — Amsterdam (Netherlands) to MiddelburgMiddelburg
Middelburg is a municipality and a city in the south-western Netherlands and the capital of the province of Zeeland. It is situated in the Midden-Zeeland region. It has a population of about 48,000.- History of Middelburg :...
(Netherlands), 224 km (139.2 mi)
Starting again from Amsterdam, stage 3 included portions dipping below sea level. The route headed south from Amsterdam along the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
, crossing through the islands of Zeeland
Zeeland
Zeeland , also called Zealand in English, is the westernmost province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the south-west of the country, consists of a number of islands and a strip bordering Belgium. Its capital is Middelburg. With a population of about 380,000, its area is about...
before ending in Middelburg
Middelburg
Middelburg is a municipality and a city in the south-western Netherlands and the capital of the province of Zeeland. It is situated in the Midden-Zeeland region. It has a population of about 48,000.- History of Middelburg :...
on Walcheren
Walcheren
thumb|right|250px|Campveer Tower in Veere, built in 1500Walcheren is a former island in the province of Zeeland in the Netherlands at the mouth of the Scheldt estuary. It lies between the Oosterschelde in the north and the Westerschelde in the south and is roughly the shape of a rhombus...
.
Crosswinds blowing from the coast fractured the peloton early on. The day's breakaway, comprising Olivier Kaisen
Olivier Kaisen
Olivier Kaisen is a Belgian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :2001200220032004- External links :**...
, Jérôme Pineau
Jérôme Pineau
Jérôme Pineau is a French professional road bicycle racer. In 2009, he rides on the UCI ProTour for .- Major achievements :20022003-External links:*...
, and Tom Stamsnijder
Tom Stamsnijder
Tom Stamsnijder is a Dutch professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam , and son of former cyclo-cross world champion Hennie Stamsnijder.- Palmares :2000...
was caught well before the end of the stage. It appeared for much of the day that Damiano Cunego
Damiano Cunego
Damiano Cunego is an Italian professional road racing cyclist who rides for the Italian UCI ProTeam . His biggest wins are the 2004 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Amstel Gold Race, and the Giro di Lombardia in 2004, 2007, 2008. He finished second in the UCI Road World Championships in 2008 and in the...
would lose over a minute to the race's overall favorites after he missed a selection early on and rode much of the stage behind them. His group also contained André Greipel
Andre Greipel
André Greipel is a German professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam .He currently lives in Hürth, close to Cologne in Germany...
and Greg Henderson
Greg Henderson
Gregory Henderson is a professional track and road racing cyclist who rides for , but who will ride for Lotto in 2012. His career includes winning the 15 km scratch race at the 2004 world championships and, in road cycling, winning the points competition at the 2005 Tour de Georgia. He...
, however, and their teams made an effective chase to catch back up to race leader Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
' group.
With 30 km (18.6 mi) left to race, a major crash occurred, taking down most of , including Henderson and former race leader Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE is a British professional track and road bicycle racer, currently riding for Team Sky. Wiggins' career began on the track, where he specialised in the pursuit and madison disciplines....
. The crash also brought down Christian Vandevelde
Christian Vandevelde
Christian Vande Velde is an American professional road racing cyclist who currently rides for . The son of United States Bicycling Hall of Fame inductee John Vande Velde, Christian became professional in 1998 for US Postal.He twice rode on the Tour de France team that brought Lance Armstrong to...
, who was forced to retire. It made for a crucial selection, as 29 riders at the head of the peloton were able to avoid it and finished 46 seconds better than Evans' group. Greipel was present in the leading group for the sprint finish, but he was unable to respond to the sprint kick from 's Wouter Weylandt
Wouter Weylandt
Wouter Weylandt was a Belgian professional cyclist for UCI ProTeam and later for . His first major win was the 17th stage of the 2008 Vuelta a España. He also won the 3rd stage of the 2010 Giro d'Italia...
, who easily took the stage win. The best-placed rider in the general classification in the leading group was Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolaevich Vinokourov, also written Alexandre Vinokourov, is an ethnically Russian Kazakhstani professional road bicycle racer who currently competes with the UCI ProTeam Astana...
, who became the third rider in as many days to pull on the pink jersey.
Despite the course's extremely flat profile, large time gaps resulted from the stage. Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling...
and darkhorse overall contender Domenico Pozzovivo
Domenico Pozzovivo
Domenico Pozzovivo s an Italian professional road racing cyclist for UCI Professional Continental team Colnago-CSF Inox.- Palmarès :20072008...
missed an early selection and never recovered, finishing eight minutes back along with riders like Marzio Bruseghin
Marzio Bruseghin
Marzio Bruseghin is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . His best achievement is winning the 2006 Italian time-trial championship, as well as winning two time trial stages in the Giro d'Italia...
, Filippo Pozzato
Filippo Pozzato
Filippo "Pippo" Pozzato is an Italian road racing cyclist with UCI ProTour Team Katusha.-Career:...
, and Gilberto Simoni
Gilberto Simoni
Gilberto Simoni is an Italian ex-professional road bicycle racer, most recently for . Simoni is twice winner of the Giro d'Italia cycling race...
. Five riders including Wiggins lost four minutes, and the last group on the road lost nearly 15 minutes.
Stage 3 Result
|
s.t. |
||
|General Classification after Stage 3
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | |
+ 0" | |
| 3 | + 1" | ||
| 4 | + 5" | ||
| 5 | + 7" | ||
| 6 | + 10" | ||
| 7 | + 10" | ||
| 8 | + 12" | ||
| 9 | + 15" | ||
| 10 | + 16" |
|}
Stage 4
12 May 2010 — SaviglianoSavigliano
Savigliano is a comune of Piedmont, northern Italy, in the Province of Cuneo, c. 50 kilometers south of Turin by rail....
to Cuneo
Cuneo
Cuneo is a city and comune in Piedmont, Northern Italy, the capital of the province of Cuneo, the third largest of Italy’s provinces by area...
, 32.5 km (20.2 mi) (team time trial
Team time trial
A team time trial is a road-based bicycle race in which teams of cyclists race against the clock .Teams start at equal intervals, usually two, three or four minutes apart...
)
After the transfer to Italy, which took the riders to Savigliano
Savigliano
Savigliano is a comune of Piedmont, northern Italy, in the Province of Cuneo, c. 50 kilometers south of Turin by rail....
in the Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
, the first stage on Italian soil was, as it had been since 2006
2006 Giro d'Italia
The 2006 Giro d'Italia was the 89th running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It was held from 6 May to 28 May 2006, and covered , beginning in the Belgian mining town of Seraing and ending in Milan...
, a team time trial
Team time trial
A team time trial is a road-based bicycle race in which teams of cyclists race against the clock .Teams start at equal intervals, usually two, three or four minutes apart...
. The route was on a slight uphill for its duration, which was atypical for a team time trial. The course headed south on mainly straight roads from Savigliano to Cuneo
Cuneo
Cuneo is a city and comune in Piedmont, Northern Italy, the capital of the province of Cuneo, the third largest of Italy’s provinces by area...
, with intermediate time checks in Genola and Centallo
Centallo
Centallo is a comune in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 60 km south of Turin and about 13 km north of Cuneo...
.
The fourth team to leave the starthouse, Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
' , set the early time to beat, bettering the teams before them by nearly a minute. Their time of 37'58" stood for close to an hour, with the teams that followed them failing to beat provisional second place team 's time of 38'40". The first team faster than BMC was , with Mikhail Ignatiev pulling his teammates to a time of 37'04", eventually fourth at the end of the day. Stage favorites took the course just after the Russian team and brought five riders home in 36'50" to take over the top spot. After and both turned in solid rides, at 37'23" and 37'15" respectively, another favorite in was next on the road. The team rode without one of its captains, Christian Vandevelde
Christian Vandevelde
Christian Vande Velde is an American professional road racing cyclist who currently rides for . The son of United States Bicycling Hall of Fame inductee John Vande Velde, Christian became professional in 1998 for US Postal.He twice rode on the Tour de France team that brought Lance Armstrong to...
, who had been forced to retire from the Giro in the last stage in the Netherlands after crashing. His remaining teammates had wanted to dedicate their prospective victory to him, but Vandevelde's presence proved sorely missed as the team managed only 37'26" and eighth on the day.
The last four teams to start were , , , and , with the pink jersey hanging in the balance as the four teams had riders tightly bunched in the overall standings from the previous stage. Liquigas-Doimo had all nine riders together as they entered Cuneo, while other teams lost riders early and often in the stage. Six crossed the finish line together in 36'37", supplanting Team Sky for best on the day. Team HTC-Columbia and Team Saxo Bank both failed to top Liquigas-Doimo in their rides, meaning Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who rides UCI ProTeam . Born near the Strait of Messina, Nibali's nickname is the "shark of the strait" or simply "the shark." His first major win came at the 2006 GP Ouest-France, where he beat an impressive field on a tough course...
stood to be the fourth new race leader in a row pending current race leader Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolaevich Vinokourov, also written Alexandre Vinokourov, is an ethnically Russian Kazakhstani professional road bicycle racer who currently competes with the UCI ProTeam Astana...
and team Astana's ride. The Kazakh team lost Alexsandr Dyachenko
Alexsandr Dyachenko
Alexsandr Dyachenko is a Kazakhstani road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam .He debuted his professional career with road bicycle racing cycling team Capec in 2004. In 2008 he joined the Ulan team. But since 2009, he is a member of Astana team.-Palmares:2007-External links:...
, Valentin Iglinskiy, and Enrico Gasparotto
Enrico Gasparotto
Enrico Gasparotto is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team , which he joined in 2009...
early in their ride, having only six riders together for most of the stage. Roman Kireyev
Roman Kireyev
Roman Kireyev is a former Kazakhstani road bicycle racer who rode for UCI ProTeam .On August 22 2011, Astana announced his retirement from cycling after he had struggled with a back injury. The timing of this announcement caused speculation that Kireyev was forced into retirement to make way for...
fell off with 3 kilometers left, and Gorazd Štangelj
Gorazd Štangelj
Gorazd Štangelj is a Slovenian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :1998...
also lost the pace well before the finish line. Štangelj rode back to his teammates the first time he came off the back, but he lost the pace again in the final kilometer. A visibly upset Vinokourov had to sit up and wait for him, costing the team the seconds they needed to keep Vinokourov in the pink jersey. Nibali became the new race leader.
Stage 4 Result
|
General Classification after Stage 4
|
Stage 5
13 May 2010 — NovaraNovara
Novara is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With c. 105,000 inhabitants, it is the second most populous city in Piedmont after Turin. It is an important crossroads for commercial traffic along the routes from Milan to Turin...
to Novi Ligure
Novi Ligure
Novi Ligure is a town and comune north of Genoa, in the Piedmont region of the province of Alessandria of northwest Italy.The town produces food, iron, steel, and textiles. It is an important junction for both road and railroad....
, 168 km (104.4 mi)
After another transfer, the fifth stage was flat, entering Liguria
Liguria
Liguria is a coastal region of north-western Italy, the third smallest of the Italian regions. Its capital is Genoa. It is a popular region with tourists for its beautiful beaches, picturesque little towns, and good food.-Geography:...
, with two short climbs occurring about two-thirds of the way into the stage. The stage paid tribute to Fausto Coppi
Fausto Coppi
Angelo Fausto Coppi, , was the dominant international cyclist of the years each side of the Second World War. His successes earned him the title Il Campionissimo, or champion of champions...
, passing through his hometown of Castellania
Castellania (AL)
Castellania is a comune in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 100 km southeast of Turin and about 30 km southeast of Alessandria...
and ending in Novi Ligure, where he lived later in his life. Novi Ligure was also the hometown of Costante Girardengo
Costante Girardengo
Costante Girardengo was an Italian professional road bicycle racer, considered by many to be one of the finest riders in the history of the sport. He was the first rider to be declared a "Campionissimo" or "champion of champions" by the Italian media and fans...
, also honored in this stage. The riders saw the finish line in Novi Ligure twice, taking a finishing circuit in the town.
A four-man breakaway distinguished themselves after 25 km (15.5 mi). The group consisted of Yukiya Arashiro
Yukiya Arashiro
Yukiya Arashiro is a Japanese road bicycle racer who rides for French UCI Professional Continental team . In 2005 he was the Japanese U23 National Time Trial and Road Race Champion and in 2007 he was national road race champion.In 2009 he was selected by his team to ride the Tour de France...
, Jérôme Pineau
Jérôme Pineau
Jérôme Pineau is a French professional road bicycle racer. In 2009, he rides on the UCI ProTour for .- Major achievements :20022003-External links:*...
, Julien Fouchard, and mountains classification leader Paul Voss
Paul Voss
Paul Voss is a German professional road bicycle racer for Endura Racing.-Palmarès:20102011- External links :...
, after a move instigated by Arashiro. Voss sat up after the second small climb on the course, having taken first-place points on both. The group's maximum time gap was four minutes, at the Passo Coppi in Castellania. set to making the chase, but for a while they were the only team chasing, meaning the time gap did not fall very fast – it was still 2'50" by the 30 km (18.6 mi) to go mark.
The teams of the race's other premier sprinters joined the chase in the finishing circuit in Novi Ligure. With 5 km (3.1 mi) to go, Arashiro, Pineau, and Fouchard held a tenuous lead of under one minute. The chase continued into the final kilometer, and the three managed to stay away by a margin of 4 seconds over the hard-charging sprinters at the head of the peloton. Pineau was the winner, over Fouchard in second. Reactions to the failure to catch the breakaway varied, from finger-pointing to complaints over the Giro directors' descriptions of the finishing circuit to simply crediting the leading trio for their combativity. With the win, Pineau took over the lead in the points classification, earning the red jersey for stage six. There was no significant change to the race's overall standings.
Stage 5 Result
|
+ 4" | ||
| 10 | + 4" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 5
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | + 13" | ||
| 3 | |
+ 20" | |
| 4 | + 26" | ||
| 5 | + 26" | ||
| 6 |
|
| align="right"| + 33"
|-
| 7
|
|
| align="right"| + 39"
|-
| 8
|
|
| align="right"| + 45"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 45"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 59"
|}
|}
Stage 6
14 May 2010 — FidenzaFidenza
Fidenza is a town and comune in the province of Parma, Emilia-Romagna region, Italy. It has around 24,000 inhabitants. The town was renamed Fidenza in 1927, recalling its Roman name of Fidentia; before, it was called Borgo San Donnino.-History:...
to Marina di Carrara
Carrara
Carrara is a city and comune in the province of Massa-Carrara , notable for the white or blue-grey marble quarried there. It is on the Carrione River, some west-northwest of Florence....
, 166 km (103.1 mi)
Another transfer took the riders to the Fidenza
Fidenza
Fidenza is a town and comune in the province of Parma, Emilia-Romagna region, Italy. It has around 24,000 inhabitants. The town was renamed Fidenza in 1927, recalling its Roman name of Fidentia; before, it was called Borgo San Donnino.-History:...
in the region of Emilia-Romagna
Emilia-Romagna
Emilia–Romagna is an administrative region of Northern Italy comprising the two historic regions of Emilia and Romagna. The capital is Bologna; it has an area of and about 4.4 million inhabitants....
. Stage 6 was categorized intermediate, going over the Passo del Brattello after 78 km (48.5 mi) and the Spolverina and the Bedizzano climbs shortly before the finish.
After 45 km (28 mi) of racing, Matthew Lloyd
Matthew Lloyd (cyclist)
Matthew Lloyd is an Australian professional road bicycle racer currently without a team, having last ridden for UCI ProTour team . Lloyd is the first Australian cyclist to win a King of the Mountains competition in a grand tour...
and Rubens Bertogliati
Rubens Bertogliati
Rubens Bertogliati is a Swiss road racing cyclist, whose breakthrough came in the 2002 Tour de France, when he was riding for the Italian team. Currently he rides for ....
became the day's signature break. Since they posed no threat to the overall standings, with Lloyd at 11'13" back of race leader Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who rides UCI ProTeam . Born near the Strait of Messina, Nibali's nickname is the "shark of the strait" or simply "the shark." His first major win came at the 2006 GP Ouest-France, where he beat an impressive field on a tough course...
the better-placed of the two, the peloton was content to allow them a big lead. Their maximum advantage was six minutes, before the ascent of the day's second climb, when a five-man chase group formed. The five cut into the leaders' advantage very quickly at first, but they were unable to make the bridge, being eventually swept back up by the peloton. On the ascent of the Bedizzano, 11 km (6.8 mi) from the finish line, Lloyd shed Bertogliati and rode the rest of the way to the stage win on his own. He was first over all three of the day's climbs, and so took the green jersey as mountains classification leader. Bertogliati was very nearly absorbed by the peloton in the stage's final kilometer, staying out in front of them by only 9 seconds to hold on to second place. Danilo Hondo
Danilo Hondo
Danilo Hondo is a German professional road bicycle racer, for . He was banned from professional cycling and then later won his appeal to return to the sport....
led the peloton across the line and momentarily thought he had won the stage, lifting his arms as he crossed the line.
Paolo Tiralongo
Paolo Tiralongo
Paolo Tiralongo is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .He joined Astana for the 2010 season, on a 2 year contract.- Palmares :1999* 1st, Triptique Ardennais Overall2001...
, who had been in tenth overall and was considered a key support rider for Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolaevich Vinokourov, also written Alexandre Vinokourov, is an ethnically Russian Kazakhstani professional road bicycle racer who currently competes with the UCI ProTeam Astana...
, crashed at the 76 km (47.2 mi) mark. He was taken off the road in an ambulance, but was not seriously hurt. squad leader Guillaume Bonnafond
Guillaume Bonnafond
Guillaume Bonnafond is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . He had excelled at both basketball and cycling as a youth, but eventually concentrated on the latter, training with 's Chambéry Cyclisme Formation, subsequently joining the squad as an amateur and, in 2009 as a...
crashed at the same time and suffered a gash near his right eye. Both riders retired from the Giro.
Stage 6 Result
|
+ 1' 15" | ||
| 10 | + 1' 15" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 6
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | + 13" | ||
| 3 | |
+ 20" | |
| 4 |
|
| align="right"| + 33"
|-
| 5
|
|
| align="right"| + 39"
|-
| 6
|
|
| align="right"| + 45"
|-
| 7
|
|
| align="right"| + 45"
|-
| 8
|
|
| align="right"| + 1' 03"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 1' 04"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 1' 13"
|}
|}
Stage 7
15 May 2010 — Carrara to MontalcinoMontalcino
Montalcino is a hilltown and comune in Tuscany, Italy. It is famous for its Brunello di Montalcino wine.The town is located to the west of Pienza, close to the Crete Senesi in Val d'Orcia. It is 42 km from Siena, 110 km from Florence and 150 km from Pisa...
, 215 km (133.6 mi)
Stage 7 was also an intermediate stage, beginning in the same city as the last one ended. It was flat for the first 100 km (62.1 mi) before a jagged second half. The race entered Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
in this stage, visiting the Passo del Rospatoio and the Poggio Civitella before the finish. The finish came on unpaved roads that are used yearly by the Italian semi-classic Montepaschi Strade Bianche.
The beginning of the stage was ridden at a very high pace, keeping any breakaway attempts in check. After 60 km (37.3 mi), Nicki Sørensen
Nicki Sørensen
Nicki Sørensen is a Danish professional road bicycle racer currently riding for . He has competed in five consecutive editions of the Tour de France from 2001 to 2005, riding as an all-round rider who rides well in hilly terrain, Sørensen is a valued support for the team captain without many wins...
and Rick Flens
Rick Flens
Rick Flens is a Dutch professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam Rabobank.-Palmares:2006...
escaped. The flat first half of the stage let them get an advantage of over nine minutes at one point, but the hilly second half combined with the day's heavy rain took its toll on them. At the 60 km (37.3 mi) to go mark, a selection occurred in the pink jersey group, and those left behind were never able to regain the pace. The race's main overall contenders were in the first group, including Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolaevich Vinokourov, also written Alexandre Vinokourov, is an ethnically Russian Kazakhstani professional road bicycle racer who currently competes with the UCI ProTeam Astana...
, Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
, Damiano Cunego
Damiano Cunego
Damiano Cunego is an Italian professional road racing cyclist who rides for the Italian UCI ProTeam . His biggest wins are the 2004 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Amstel Gold Race, and the Giro di Lombardia in 2004, 2007, 2008. He finished second in the UCI Road World Championships in 2008 and in the...
, Stefano Garzelli
Stefano Garzelli
Stefano Garzelli is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. The high point of his career to date was his overall win in the 2000 Giro d'Italia, after a close three-way competition with Gilberto Simoni and Francesco Casagrande.-Career:He started out as being a domestique for Marco Pantani but...
, and the duo of Ivan Basso
Ivan Basso
Ivan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
and race leader Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who rides UCI ProTeam . Born near the Strait of Messina, Nibali's nickname is the "shark of the strait" or simply "the shark." His first major win came at the 2006 GP Ouest-France, where he beat an impressive field on a tough course...
. Notably left behind were riders who had previously been considered contenders, like Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE is a British professional track and road bicycle racer, currently riding for Team Sky. Wiggins' career began on the track, where he specialised in the pursuit and madison disciplines....
and Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
, who finished the day 4'30" and 5'20" respectively back of the stage winner.
The leaders brought back Sørensen and Flens with 41 km (25.5 mi) remaining in the stage. The first section of unpaved dirt roads (strada bianche is Italian for "white roads," referring to such areas) took its toll on Nibali, when one of his teammates crashed and subsequently brought him down with him. Nibali needed a bike change, and by the time he got one, Evans, Vinokourov, Cunego, and others had gotten away and were a minute and a half ahead. The move had been instigated by Vinokourov, and he stood to gain the most from it being the highest placed in the overall standings. The rain continued throughout the stage and made the dirt roads muddy. The cold and wet weather combined with the poor road surface caused Vinokourov to question after the stage whether such roads should be used in a stage race at all.
Vinokourov, Cunego, and Evans finished together and contested a sprint for the stage win. Cunego went first, after a hairpin left-hand turn, but Evans had the better timing and crossed the line 2 seconds ahead of his companions. Vinokourov re-assumed the pink jersey.
Stage 7 Result
|
+ 2" | ||
| 4 | + 6" | ||
| 5 | + 12" | ||
| 6 | + 27" | ||
| 7 | + 29" | ||
| 8 | + 1' 01" | ||
| 9 | + 1' 07" | ||
| 10 | + 1' 10" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 7
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | + 1' 12" | ||
| 3 | + 1' 29" | ||
| 4 | + 1' 30" | ||
| 5 | + 1' 33" | ||
| 6 | + 1' 40" | ||
| 7 | + 1' 48" | ||
| 8 | + 1' 51" | ||
| 9 | + 1' 54" | ||
| 10 | |
+ 2' 00" |
|}
Stage 8
16 May 2010 — Chianciano to Monte TerminilloMonte Terminillo
Monte Terminillo is a massif in the Monti Reatini, part of the Abruzzese Apennines range in central Italy. It is located some 20 km from Rieti and 100 km from Rome and has a highest altitude of ....
, 189 km (117.4 mi)
This was the Giro's first mountain stage, concluding with a climb to Monte Terminillo
Monte Terminillo
Monte Terminillo is a massif in the Monti Reatini, part of the Abruzzese Apennines range in central Italy. It is located some 20 km from Rieti and 100 km from Rome and has a highest altitude of ....
. Prior to the Terminillo, the course undulated roughly, visiting two other categorized climbs and other rises in elevation. The Terminillo climb took 16.1 km (10 mi), gaining 1172 m (3,845.1 ft) of vertical elevation for an average gradient of 7.3%. The steepest stretches of the climb reach 12%.
The day began with sprint great Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling...
and 2009 youth classification runner-up Francesco Masciarelli
Francesco Masciarelli
Francesco Masciarelli is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for . He is the son of former racing cyclist Palmiro Masciarelli and brother of fellow racing cyclists Simone Masciarelli and Andrea Masciarelli.- Palmarès :...
both abandoning the race. Petacchi had been suffering from bronchitis and had not been adequately recovering from one day to the next.
There were a few breakaway attempts before Monte Nibbio, the first categorized climb of the day, but none got away as the peloton hit the ascent of that climb together. As the summit neared, mountains classification leader Matthew Lloyd
Matthew Lloyd (cyclist)
Matthew Lloyd is an Australian professional road bicycle racer currently without a team, having last ridden for UCI ProTour team . Lloyd is the first Australian cyclist to win a King of the Mountains competition in a grand tour...
attacked and was first to the line to pad his lead in that classification. Several other riders followed him, leading to a split in the peloton. A short while later, with over 100 km (62.1 mi) left to race, 17 riders from 15 teams formed the day's defining breakaway. and handled the pacemaking at the front of the first large group, keeping the breakaway's time advantage to under three minutes. When and joined the chase, the gap fell precipitously.
At the front of the race, with 14 km (8.7 mi) to go, Chris Anker Sørensen
Chris Anker Sørensen
Chris Anker Sørensen is a Danish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour .Chris Anker Sørensen started his professional career in 2007 with Team CSC...
tried to leave his breakaway companions and solo to victory. He was easily covered by Simone Stortoni, and the two rode the next eight kilometers together ahead of the main field. The pink jersey group had absorbed the other riders from the 17-strong break, and a few riders from the pink jersey group who did not pose overall threats were able to break free and finish ahead of them. Among them was 's Xavier Tondó
Xavier Tondó
Xavier Tondo Volpini was a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who specialized in mountain stages of bicycle races- Death :...
, who had stayed with his team leader Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
on previous days but had been specifically released by Sastre to ride his own race at this point, as Sastre continued to struggle.
Though Sørensen seemed to be in physical distress for most of the final 14 km (8.7 mi), he was able to shed Stortoni rather easily with 6 km (3.7 mi) and stayed out front for the stage win. The overall standings were reshuffled somewhat, as David Millar
David Millar
David Millar is a British road racing cyclist riding for . He has won three stages of the Tour de France, two of the Vuelta a España and one Stage of the Giro d'Italia. He was the British national road champion and the national time trial champion, both in 2007...
, Linus Gerdemann
Linus Gerdemann
Linus Gerdemann is a German professional road bicycle racer who currently rides for .-Career:After riding on amateur teams Team Winfix and Team AKUD Arnolds Sicherheit, in 2005 he became a professional rider for after a recommendation from Jens Voigt, signing on for a 2-year contract...
, and Thomas Rohregger
Thomas Rohregger
Thomas Rohregger is an Austrian professional road bicycle racer. He currently rides for UCI ProTeam Leopard Trek.-Palmarès:2006...
, who had all been in the top ten overnight, were dropped on the climb and lost time. This made for the odd result of Richie Porte
Richie Porte
Richard "Richie" Porte is an Australian professional road bicycle racer on . In his first year in the UCI Pro Tour, Porte has been a consistent performer in the General classification at several stage races....
and Marco Pinotti
Marco Pinotti
Marco Pinotti is an Italian road racing cyclist for UCI ProTeam . Pinotti is a specialist of individual time trial, in which he is a five-time Italian Time Trial Champion ....
also being dropped and losing time, but actually moving up overall, since they did not lose as much time.
Stage 8 Result
|
General Classification after Stage 8
|
Stage 9
17 May 2010 — FrosinoneFrosinone
Frosinone is a town and comune in Lazio, central Italy, the administrative seat of the Province of Frosinone. It is located about 75 km south-east of Rome close to the Rome-Naples Autostrada A1...
to Cava de' Tirreni
Cava de' Tirreni
Cava de’ Tirreni is a city and comune in the region of Campania, Italy, in the province of Salerno, 10 km northwest of the town of Salerno...
, 188 km (116.8 mi)
This stage was flat, without any climbs giving points for the mountains classification. The Giro reached its southernmost point in this stage, Cava de' Tirreni
Cava de' Tirreni
Cava de’ Tirreni is a city and comune in the region of Campania, Italy, in the province of Salerno, 10 km northwest of the town of Salerno...
in Campania
Campania
Campania is a region in southern Italy. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,590 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
.
After 9 km (5.6 mi) had been covered, Giampaolo Cheula
Giampaolo Cheula
Giampaolo Cheula is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI Professional Continental team .- External links :*...
, Tom Stamsnijder
Tom Stamsnijder
Tom Stamsnijder is a Dutch professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam , and son of former cyclo-cross world champion Hennie Stamsnijder.- Palmares :2000...
, and Michael Barry
Michael Barry (cyclist)
Michael Barry is a Canadian professional road racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .Previous to riding for UCI ProTour team he spent several years with the . He also raced of the Saturn Cycling Team for a number of years before going to US Postal Service/Discovery. He was born and raised in...
slipped away from the peloton along with breakaway specialist Mikhail Ignatiev. , eager to set up their leader André Greipel
Andre Greipel
André Greipel is a German professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam .He currently lives in Hürth, close to Cologne in Germany...
for a prospective mass sprint, paced the main field for most of the stage and kept the leaders' maximum advantage at around three minutes for most of the stage. The rain on the day was heavy, leaving standing puddles that sprayed riders in the peloton in the face as their bicycles rode through it. also came forward later in the day, and by 30 km (18.6 mi) to go, a split occurred in the peloton because of the pace Garmin forced in efforts to catch the break. Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
and Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
were both initially left behind – Evans made his way back to the leading group and did not lose any time, but Sastre again lost out and led the second group across the line 1'49" back of the stage winner.
Greipel himself was nearly cracked by the pace in the stage's final kilometers. While he did finish with the leading group, he was just 19th on the day, not contesting the sprint. Race leader Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolaevich Vinokourov, also written Alexandre Vinokourov, is an ethnically Russian Kazakhstani professional road bicycle racer who currently competes with the UCI ProTeam Astana...
was unexpectedly the first rider to try to sprint to the finish line, hoping for one of the time bonuses available to the first three finishers. Second-place man Evans marked this move and the two were briefly away in the stage's final kilometer, but they were overhauled by the sprint trains which came up behind them. 's Matthew Goss
Matthew Goss
Matthew Harley Goss is an Australian professional road and track racing cyclist, currently riding for the UCI ProTour outfit .-Career:Goss started in the business with track cycling...
was trying to lead Greipel out for the sprint, but when he saw that the German was not at the front of the field with 400 m (1,312.3 ft) to go, he decided to race for the line himself, and won the stage.
Stage 9 Result
|
s.t. | ||
| 7 | s.t. | ||
| 8 | s.t. | ||
| 9 | s.t. | ||
| 10 | s.t. |
||
|General Classification after Stage 9
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | + 1' 12" | ||
| 3 | + 1' 33" | ||
| 4 | + 1' 51" | ||
| 5 | + 2' 17" | ||
| 6 | |
+ 2' 26" | |
| 7 | + 2' 34" | ||
| 8 | + 2' 47" | ||
| 9 | + 3' 08" | ||
| 10 | + 3' 09" |
|}
Stage 10
18 May 2010 — AvellinoAvellino
Avellino is a town and comune, capital of the province of Avellino in the Campania region of southern Italy. It is situated in a plain surrounded by mountains 42 km north-east of Naples and is an important hub on the road from Salerno to Benevento.-History:Before the Roman conquest, the...
to Bitonto
Bitonto
Bitonto is a city and comune in the province of Bari , Italy. It is nicknamed the "City of Olives" due to the numerous olive groves surrounding the city.-Geography:...
, 220 km (136.7 mi)
This stage was also categorized flat, though it had a few short hills, including the categorized Valico dell'Imbandima after 94 km (58.4 mi). It headed east into Apulia
Apulia
Apulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
in preparation for a northward run to the Dolomites
Dolomites
The Dolomites are a mountain range located in north-eastern Italy. It is a part of Southern Limestone Alps and extends from the River Adige in the west to the Piave Valley in the east. The northern and southern borders are defined by the Puster Valley and the Sugana Valley...
later in the race.
This was a largely straightforward day of racing. A three-rider breakaway, comprising Hubert Dupont
Hubert Dupont
Hubert Dupont is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .-Palmares:2006...
, Charles Wegelius, and Dario Cataldo
Dario Cataldo
Dario Cataldo is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam .After surprisingly winning the Baby Giro in 2006, Cataldo signed as a neo-professional for Liquigas for the 2007 season. In January 2007, Cataldo was hit by a car while training...
, formed early on in the stage. They attained a maximum advantage of seven minutes, as the peloton took a relaxed approach to the first few hours of racing, at last enjoying nice weather. When and came forward to make the chase, the time gap fell precipitously. The roads into Bitonto were very long and straight, meaning the peloton could see the breakaway ahead of them at times when they still had a deficit of over a minute to them. With 16.7 km (10.4 mi) left to race, Dupont, Wegelius, and Cataldo were brought back. 's top sprinter Greg Henderson
Greg Henderson
Gregory Henderson is a professional track and road racing cyclist who rides for , but who will ride for Lotto in 2012. His career includes winning the 15 km scratch race at the 2004 world championships and, in road cycling, winning the points competition at the 2005 Tour de Georgia. He...
crashed and took several kilometers to get back to the leading group, leaving their sprint train disorganized. It fell to and to organize the sprint, and their top sprinters were first on the day, with points classification leader Tyler Farrar
Tyler Farrar
Tyler Farrar is an American professional road racing cyclist since 2003.-Cycling career:Farrar started racing at 13, and rode for in 2003, in 2004, and in 2006 and 2007. In April 2006 he crashed near the finish of the Circuit de la Sarthe and broke his collarbone and missed most of the season...
from Garmin th victor. After the stage, Farrar praised the leadout he had received from Julian Dean
Julian Dean
Julian Dean is a road racing cyclist who rides for . Dean rode in the 2008 Tour de France, 2007 Tour de France, 2006 Tour de France and the 2004 Tour de France, finishing all four times. In 2008, he finished 9th in the points classification...
, as it not only gave him the perfect acceleration on the slight uphill finish, it also split the field, as only seven other riders finished with the same time. There was no significant change to the overall standings with the day's results.
Stage 10 Result
|
s.t. | ||
| 7 | s.t. | ||
| 8 | s.t. | ||
| 9 | s.t. | ||
| 10 | + 3" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 10
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | + 1' 12" | ||
| 3 | + 1' 33" | ||
| 4 | + 1' 51" | ||
| 5 | + 2' 17" | ||
| 6 | |
+ 2' 26" | |
| 7 | + 2' 34" | ||
| 8 | + 2' 47" | ||
| 9 | + 3' 08" | ||
| 10 | + 3' 09" |
|}
Stage 11
19 May 2010 — LuceraLucera
Lucera is a town and comune in the Province of Foggia, in the Apulia region of southern Italy.-Ancient era and early Middle Ages :Lucera is an ancient city founded in Daunia, the centre of Dauni territory . Archeological excavations show the presence of a bronze age village inside the city boundaries...
to L'Aquila
L'Aquila
L'Aquila is a city and comune in central Italy, both the capital city of the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila. , it has a population of 73,150 inhabitants, but has a daily presence in the territory of 100,000 people for study, tertiary activities, jobs and tourism...
, 256 km (159.1 mi)
This was the longest stage of the 2010 Giro. It was categorized intermediate, with a hilly profile including three categorized climbs. It was the first north-bound stage of the Giro, going to L'Aquila
L'Aquila
L'Aquila is a city and comune in central Italy, both the capital city of the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila. , it has a population of 73,150 inhabitants, but has a daily presence in the territory of 100,000 people for study, tertiary activities, jobs and tourism...
in the region of Abruzzo
Abruzzo
Abruzzo is a region in Italy, its western border lying less than due east of Rome. Abruzzo borders the region of Marche to the north, Lazio to the west and south-west, Molise to the south-east, and the Adriatic Sea to the east...
, visiting some of the area damaged by the 2009 L'Aquila earthquake
2009 L'Aquila earthquake
The 2009 L'Aquila earthquake occurred in the region of Abruzzo, in central Italy. The main shock occurred at 3:32 local time on 6 April 2009, and was rated 5.8 on the Richter scale and 6.3 on the moment magnitude scale; its epicentre was near L'Aquila, the capital of Abruzzo, which together...
.
A breakaway formed starting at the 20 km (12.4 mi) mark of the stage. Little by little, more and more riders came clear into the leading group. There were more than 50 riders in it at one point; the only team absent from the leading group was , and most teams had three or more riders present. This group took a maximum advantage on the pink jersey of over 20 minutes. The overall favorites left in the pink jersey group either didn't know who was in the leading group or miscalculated how much advantage to give them, because sixth-place man and best young rider Richie Porte
Richie Porte
Richard "Richie" Porte is an Australian professional road bicycle racer on . In his first year in the UCI Pro Tour, Porte has been a consistent performer in the General classification at several stage races....
was among those in the escape, as were squad leaders Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rides in 2011 for UCI Professional Continental team...
and Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE is a British professional track and road bicycle racer, currently riding for Team Sky. Wiggins' career began on the track, where he specialised in the pursuit and madison disciplines....
, who had fallen out of contention days before but now suddenly stood to be right back in it.
The leading group worked cohesively for much of the stage. , , , and rode a hard tempo in the group since they stood to have riders high-placed in the overall standings should they gain significant time on the day. Some riders, in particular teammates of Stefano Garzelli
Stefano Garzelli
Stefano Garzelli is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. The high point of his career to date was his overall win in the 2000 Giro d'Italia, after a close three-way competition with Gilberto Simoni and Francesco Casagrande.-Career:He started out as being a domestique for Marco Pantani but...
, Michele Scarponi
Michele Scarponi
Michele Scarponi is an Italian professional road bicycle racer, currently riding for UCI ProTeam .In 2006, Scarponi was implicated in the Operación Puerto doping case...
and Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
, were called back to the pink jersey group to try to help make the pace. and were both decimated by riders abandoning the race at this point, as only five riders remained for both squads at the end of the day. This made it difficult for them to organize the chase effort. For a while, , , , and all mounted a coordinated chase, and the time gap to the leaders fell from 20 minutes to 13 by the summit of the Capo di Valle, the day's last climb. While this was still ample time to allow the stage winner to come from the front group, it figured to be whittled down to 7 or 8 minutes by the finish since the remaining terrain in the stage was mostly flat. However, right at the summit of the climb, stopped sending riders to the front of the pink jersey group, essentially giving up on the chase. This caused the other three teams to abandon the chase as well, and the time gap stayed right at 13 minutes to the end of the stage.
The leading group fragmented a little as riders attacked for the stage win. 's Evgeni Petrov secured his first victory in seven years with a well-timed attack in the stage's final kilometer. He came home 5 seconds ahead of Dario Cataldo
Dario Cataldo
Dario Cataldo is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam .After surprisingly winning the Baby Giro in 2006, Cataldo signed as a neo-professional for Liquigas for the 2007 season. In January 2007, Cataldo was hit by a car while training...
and Sastre, and 7 seconds over a group of other riders from the break. Forty riders finished scattered ahead of the pink jersey group. Scarponi, Garzelli, Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali
Vincenzo Nibali is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who rides UCI ProTeam . Born near the Strait of Messina, Nibali's nickname is the "shark of the strait" or simply "the shark." His first major win came at the 2006 GP Ouest-France, where he beat an impressive field on a tough course...
, and Damiano Cunego
Damiano Cunego
Damiano Cunego is an Italian professional road racing cyclist who rides for the Italian UCI ProTeam . His biggest wins are the 2004 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Amstel Gold Race, and the Giro di Lombardia in 2004, 2007, 2008. He finished second in the UCI Road World Championships in 2008 and in the...
gained three seconds against overnight race leader Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolaevich Vinokourov, also written Alexandre Vinokourov, is an ethnically Russian Kazakhstani professional road bicycle racer who currently competes with the UCI ProTeam Astana...
, but they all lost the better part of 13 minutes to the leading group, and all fell from the top ten in the overall standings. Porte became the new race leader, adding the pink jersey to the white he had previously been holding.
and blamed each other for the pink jersey group's errors on the day. Vinokourov felt that since his team was depleted and that Nibali and Ivan Basso
Ivan Basso
Ivan Basso is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam . Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders...
stood a better chance to win the Giro than he did anyway that should have taken up the chase. The Italian team, for their part, felt that since had held the pink jersey at the time that it was on them to organize the chase.
A 51-rider group, including most of the Giro's remaining sprinters, finished 46'31" back on the day. This put them at risk of being removed from the race, since they were outside the time limit based on the stage winner's time. Race organizers chose not to eliminate such a large group of riders, but they assessed each of them a 25 point penalty in the points classification. This affected Tyler Farrar
Tyler Farrar
Tyler Farrar is an American professional road racing cyclist since 2003.-Cycling career:Farrar started racing at 13, and rode for in 2003, in 2004, and in 2006 and 2007. In April 2006 he crashed near the finish of the Circuit de la Sarthe and broke his collarbone and missed most of the season...
, who had a 32-point lead in the classification reduced to just seven, opening up the competition.
Stage 11 Result
|
+ 7" | ||
| 6 | + 7" | ||
| 7 | + 7" | ||
| 8 | + 7" | ||
| 9 | + 7" | ||
| 10 | + 7" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 11
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | + 1' 42" | ||
| 3 | + 1' 56" | ||
| 4 | + 3' 54" | ||
| 5 | + 4' 41" | ||
| 6 | + 5' 16" | ||
| 7 | + 5' 34" | ||
| 8 | + 7' 09" | ||
| 9 | + 7' 24" | ||
| 10 | + 8' 14" |
|}