2010 Giro d'Italia, Stage 12 to Stage 21
Encyclopedia
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 race. The last eight stages were clustered in northeast Italy, with six summit finishes among them.
One of the highlights of the second half of the Giro was Monte Zoncolan
; although its peak is not as high as other climbs in the race, its gradients are extremely difficult, averaging at 12% with maximum stretches of 22%. Ivan Basso
won this stage, and in so doing positioned himself well for the conclusion of the race.
As the second half of the Giro began, young Australian Richie Porte
held the race leadership by way of having been in a fortunate 50-rider strong breakaway in stage 11. The first two stages of the Giro's second half were flat and did not alter the overall standings in any significant way. A mountain climb to Monte Grappa in stage 14 transferred the race leader's pink jersey to David Arroyo
of the team. Arroyo, a skilled descender, tried to hold off Ivan Basso
and the team in the Giro's final stages, but on a relatively easy climb to Aprica
in stage 19, Basso took the pink jersey for the first time en route to his second career Giro crown.
to Porto Recanati
, 191 km (118.7 mi)
There were two small categorized climbs toward the end of the stage, the first of which marked the race's entrance into the province of Macerata
, on roads often visited by Tirreno–Adriatico. The riders saw the finish line in Porto Recanati twice, taking a finishing circuit in the town.
's Rick Flens
attacked 9 km (5.6 mi) into the stage, to form the day's principal breakaway. He rode alone for a time, but 32 km (19.9 mi) later, Yuriy Krivtsov
and Olivier Kaisen
made the bridge to join him. The peloton was mindful not to give them an enormous time gap like the breakaway in stage 11 had gotten. , working for the Giro's only double stage winner Tyler Farrar
, took the pace, and kept the time gap manageable. The trio had 9'37" at one point, but as the circuit in Porto Recanati began, their advantage was just 1'10". With 14 km (8.7 mi) left to race, the three-rider breakaway was brought back into the peloton.
At that point, counterattacks began. Francesco Faili and four others briefly came clear, but they were not able to stay away for the stage win either. When their group was brought back, a ten-rider group containing several overall contenders, including Damiano Cunego
, Michele Scarponi
, Stefano Garzelli
, Ivan Basso
, Vincenzo Nibali
, and Alexander Vinokourov
got free on the third-category climb preceding the finish. Their advantage never extended beyond a few seconds, but they stayed away and finished 10 seconds ahead of the rest of the peloton. Filippo Pozzato
, the strongest sprinter in the group and the rider with the least overall chances, won the stage. Pozzato was the first Italian rider to win a stage in this Giro, and it was his first career Giro stage win.
Behind them, in the peloton, Cadel Evans
was the most notable rider to miss the selection. He tried to force the pace to bring the break back, but clashed with Daniele Righi
at the front of the peloton. Righi was trying to ride a much slower pace to allow his teammate Cunego the chance to stay away for victory. Evans and Righi nearly came to blows after the stage. They were both later fined by the UCI, though they shook hands and made up before the next stage. The top ten to the overall standings were unchanged by the day's results.
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|General Classification after Stage 12
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, 222 km (137.9 mi)
The first two-thirds of the course was mainly flat, following the Adriatic coast. The route then cut inland for two climbs, including one with a maximum gradient of 18%. The stage finished with 40 km (24.9 mi) of descending or flat racing. The arrival town of Cesenatico was the hometown of Marco Pantani
, and the stage commemorated him.
Seventeen riders from 16 teams formed the day's breakaway, coming together as a cohesive group after 62 km (38.5 mi) of racing. was the only team with two riders in the move; they were Joan Horrach
and Sergei Klimov. Iban Mayoz
in 26th overall was the highest-placed man in the group, over 16 minutes behind race leader Richie Porte
, so the peloton had little interest in chasing this escape group. Their maximum advantage over the main field was eight and a half minutes. On the Perticara climb, the first of the day, Vladimir Karpets
, who had been in 19th overall and represented a much bigger overall threat than anyone in the escape, attacked and came clear of the peloton. He eventually found Horrach, who paced him as far as he could before hitting the wall. tried to mount a chase to bring back Karpets, but he stayed away and gained two minutes against the peloton. He also moved up five places in the overall standings, passing both Ivan Basso
and Vincenzo Nibali
to be 14th overall at day's end.
On the descent of the Perticara, various riders in the slightly depleted leading group attacked, but none succeeded in escaping. Kalle Kriit
, Mayoz, Tom Stamsnijder
, Mauro Facci
, and Cameron Meyer
eventually took a lead over the others for a few kilometers, though most of the breakaway group again came together as the finish line neared. Craig Lewis
tried to solo for the stage win with an attack from 1500 m (4,921.3 ft) out. He seemed poised for victory for a few moments, but the group caught him 100 m (328.1 ft) from the end of the stage. Manuel Belletti
from the small team outsprinted Greg Henderson
to win the stage. Belletti is from the area where the stage ended. He recalled after the stage that in his youth his father would take him to see Pantani ride, and he dedicated the victory to both of them. The peloton finished 7'28" back on the stage, but other than for Karpets' attack there was no major change to the overall standings.
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|General Classification after Stage 13
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to Asolo (Monte Grappa)
, 201 km (124.9 mi)
Monte Grappa, which used to feature frequently in the Giro, was the first of several major climbs in the Giro's final week. It was the only categorized climb in this stage, and reached with just over 40 km (24.9 mi) remaining. The race took the hardest route up the climb, which averages 8% gradients with maximum gradients of 14%.
The pace was high in the peloton as the stage began. This was one of the only stages in the Giro to this point run in nice weather. After 35 km (21.7 mi) were covered, and nearly an hour spent racing, Markus Eibegger
instigated the day's breakaway, being followed in his attack by four others. The peloton let them get an advantage of over eight minutes by the 60 km (37.3 mi) mark. The time gap hovered there until the Grappa began, at which point and led a coordinated chase. Bradley Wiggins
attacked out of the group of favorites and found his teammate Steven Cummings
, a member of the original breakaway, up the road. While Cummings paced him to a gap before cracking, Wiggins was unable to stay away for very long. Vincenzo Nibali
was the next on the attack, drawing with him Michele Scarponi
. Cadel Evans
and Ivan Basso
made the bridge, and the four of them absorbed the remnants of the morning escape, quickly becoming the leading group on the road. The climb went above the tree line, meaning there was wind and rain facing the riders at the top of the Grappa. Basso was first over the line for the mountain sprint, but it was Nibali who took aggressive lines on the descent, soloing to the finish 23 seconds ahead of the other three. Basso did not work in the chase, protecting the interests of his teammate up the road, but took the sprint for second place and the 12 bonus seconds it afforded. The race lead transferred as a result of the day's racing; overnight leader Richie Porte
finished over four minutes behind Nibali and lost the jersey to David Arroyo
. Arroyo also lost time on the stage, but did not lose as much. Having also been in the important breakaway in stage 11, Arroyo was in position to take the pink jersey.
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|General Classification after Stage 14
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to Zoncolan
, 218 km (135.5 mi)
The first 70 km (43.5 mi) of this stage were flat, preceding some heavy climbing. The finish was on the 10.1 km (6.3 mi) long Monte Zoncolan, with an average gradient of 12%, and stretches of up to 22%. It was preceded on the course by three other climbs. This was the third passage of the Giro over the Zoncolan; Gilberto Simoni
won each of the first two, in 2003
and 2007
.
In the flat section of the course, six riders opened up a substantial lead on the peloton. These were Ludovic Turpin
, Jackson Rodriguez
, Guillaume Le Floch
, Nico Sijmens
, Jérôme Pineau
, and Francesco Reda
. The peloton gave them 14 minutes, but with the massive Zoncolan climb ahead, there was little chance that they would stay away. , one of the only squads that still had all nine riders in the Giro, drove a very hard pace in the main field when the climbing began. The time gap fell slowly on the day's first climb, the Sella Chianzutanis, but the second, the Passo Duron, was far steeper and took its toll on the leaders. There were five left out front with just over three minutes' advantage on a depleted peloton of about 25 riders able to keep 's pace.
The Zoncolan climb completely broke the race open. Very few riders climbed the mountain together, and the overall favorites quickly absorbed the remnants of the morning breakaway. An attack from Michele Scarponi
opened things up in the favorites' group, and Ivan Basso
was the first to respond. Basso drew with him Marco Pinotti
and Cadel Evans
, as Alexander Vinokourov
, Carlos Sastre
, and Bradley Wiggins
all fell off the pace. Wiggins cracked badly as the Zoncolan climb wore on, and lost more than 25 minutes, to fall conclusively out of any overall contention. Race leader David Arroyo
was also dropped on the climb.
Basso put in repeated attacks in the front of the race. He succeeded in dropping Pinotti and Scarponi, but Evans held the pace for a while. Finally, with 3.7 km (2.3 mi) left to race, Basso was able to drop the Australian, and soloed through the hardest parts of the climb for victory by over a minute. This gap was the largest among the contenders, as from Evans in second to Arroyo in 11th only two and a half minutes passed. Arroyo kept the pink jersey, but Basso's deficit in the overall standings was greatly reduced, as he leapt from 11th to third in the general classification with the day's results.
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|General Classification after Stage 15
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to Plan de Corones, 12.9 km (8 mi) (individual time trial
)
After the second rest day, in Friuli
, the peloton faced the Giro's third race against the clock, and second individual race. It consisted of the climb to Plan de Corones, visited for the second time in the Giro's history. With 1080 m (3,543.3 ft) of vertical gain in 12.9 km (8 mi), the climb had an average gradient of 8.5%. Its steepest stretches, in the final kilometer, were on a 24% grade, and the final 5.2 km of the course is on a dirt road.
Riders were staggered into three groups of approximately 50, with a 90 minute break in between the groups. This was necessary because there was not enough room at the top of the Plan de Corones to hold the entire Giro peloton and caravan; during the breaks, the riders who had just ridden the climb descended the same way they came up. The course was run on a narrow access road to a ski resort.
The best time through the first two groups came from 's Rigoberto Urán
, who stopped the clock in 43' 04". Early in the third group came former Giro champion Stefano Garzelli
, who was over 90 seconds better than Urán to claim the top spot. Garzelli's ride held up to the end of the day as the stage winning time, Garzelli's first Giro stage win since 2007. He expressed surprise at his win when asked after the stage, and said it was one of his "nicest" wins of his career. The biggest surprise of the day was 's John Gadret
turning in a third place ride, the only rider other than Evans within a minute of Garzelli's winning time.
Later on came the Giro's overall favorites. Among them, Cadel Evans
turned in the best ride, second on the day 42 seconds the lesser of Garzelli despite having the best time at the intermediate time check. Carlos Sastre
lost more time, with a 19th place ride dropping two minutes. 's two leaders Ivan Basso
and Vincenzo Nibali
both had top-ten rides to solidify their positions in the standings, though Evans closed his deficit to Basso considerably with his ride and leapfrogged Sastre in the standings. Race leader David Arroyo
was 16th, over two minutes back on the day, but still had enough time in hand to retain the pink jersey.
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|General Classification after Stage 16
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to Pejo Terme
, 173 km (107.5 mi)
This was categorized as an intermediate stage. It included a summit stage finish, though a higher pass, the Passo delle Palade, occurs earlier in the stage.
This was described as the Giro's most controlled stage. After a morning breakaway of 19 riders took from 48 km (29.8 mi) into the stage, and rode a tempo at the front of the peloton to protect their general classification leaders, affording the stage win to one from the leading group.
Seventeen teams were represented in the break; and each had two riders in the group. Their time gap was a little over nine minutes for almost all of the stage. Mikhail Ignatiev set off on a solo bid for victory 28 km (17.4 mi) from the line, but he faded quickly and finished the stage with the peloton. At 20 km (12.4 mi) to go, Nicki Sørensen
put in an attack that broke the race open. The leaders no longer rode as a cohesive unit, and finished scattered ahead of the peloton. Sørensen's move was not destined for success, as he faded and finished the stage 11th. Daniel Moreno
then rode at the front of the race for a few kilometers before the chasing group of Danilo Hondo
, Steven Kruijswijk
, and Damien Monier
passed him up. The three of them rode together for a while before Monier took off on the Pejo Terme climb, soloing to victory half a minute ahead of Kruijswijk and Hondo. The stage win was Monier's first professional victory. It was the sprinter Hondo who climbed to second on the stage, saying afterward that he had had "good legs" despite the stage profile not favoring him. The race's overall favorites finished 9'53" back on the stage, with Michele Scarponi
gaining one second on the rest of his group at the finish line. Richie Porte
, Carlos Sastre
, Damiano Cunego
, and Robert Kišerlovski
all lost a few seconds, but the composition of the top ten in the overall classification remained the same as the day before.
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|General Classification after Stage 17
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to Brescia
, 151 km (93.8 mi)
This stage was short and flat, with no categorized climbs. It headed south from Levico Terme to Brescia in Lombardy
.
After missing out on the bunch finishes earlier in the Giro, sprinter André Greipel
, the season's most prolific winner, made a point of continuing through the mountain stages earlier in the Giro's last week with victory in this stage in mind. Olivier Kaisen
and Alan Marangoni
were the day's principal breakaway, but rode a tempo at the front of the peloton that kept them from getting any more than three minutes' advantage. They timed the catch ideally, reeling in Kaisen with 3 km (1.9 mi) remaining in the stage and Marangoni a kilometer later. Marcel Sieberg
and František Raboň
rode on either side of Greipel to keep him protected and keep any other sprinter from holding his wheel. Greipel accelerated inside the final few hundred meters of the stage and took the victory ahead of Julian Dean
and Tiziano Dall'Antonia
. There was no change to the overall standings with the day's results.
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|General Classification after Stage 18
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, 195 km (121.2 mi)
This stage contained four categorized climbs, visiting the summit finish in Aprica once before the actual conclusion of the stage. 32 km (19.9 mi) from the finish of the stage was the Passo del Mortirolo
, which was only marginally less steep than the Zoncolan, and was 2.7 km (1.7 mi) longer. After the descent from the Mortirolo, a 15 km (9.3 mi) long ramp back to Aprica was the finish.
The first few kilometers of this stage were flat, and during this time the peloton stayed together. After an hour of racing, nine riders – Jan Bakelandts, Francesco Faili, Branislau Samoilau
, Luca Mazzanti
, Yuriy Krivtsov
, Jackson Rodriguez
, William Bonnet
, Xavier Tondó
, and Leonardo Duque
– established a gap over the main field. They had an advantage of 8'27" at the stage's feed zone. It was at this point that the day's climbing began, with the first visit to Aprica. On this climb, Stefano Garzelli
attacked out of the peloton and came clear, bridging up to his teammate Faili who had intentionally fallen off the pace of the leaders to work for Garzelli. In the peloton, the team of Ivan Basso
and Vincenzo Nibali
, one of the only squads that still had all nine riders, was riding a very hard tempo to try to isolate the competition while protecting their leaders. Through the first ascent of Aprica and the first-category Trivigno climb, this was how the race was, with the remnants of the morning breakaway out in the front of the race, Garzelli about a minute behind, and then the rapidly depleting group of overall favorites behind him.
Damiano Cunego
was the first overall contender dropped by 's pace, as Sylwester Szmyd
drove the group up the Mortirolo. In short order, everyone from the morning breakaway was reabsorbed, leaving only Garzelli out front. As one by one 's support riders rode increasingly harder and harder paces before bonking and falling off, many overall contenders followed Cunego out the back of what had been the pink jersey group. Carlos Sastre
was the next to lose contact, followed by Alexander Vinokourov
. Cadel Evans
fell off numerous times and fought back before being dropped for good near the summit. Race leader David Arroyo
rode the climb behind Evans and was immediately at risk of losing the pink jersey, as the lead group contained only Basso, Nibali, and Michele Scarponi
, who crested the Mortirolo more than two minutes ahead of him.
Basso rode a conservative descent of the Mortirolo, and Nibali and Scarponi had to wait for him several times. Arroyo, a rider recognized as a skilled descender, rode very aggressively, catching and passing Sastre and John Gadret
, then Evans, then Vinokourov and came within 30 seconds of reaching the leading Italian trio. Garzelli, for his part, had also ridden an aggressive descent of the Mortirolo, but he crashed and would abandon the race the next day due to his injuries.
Facing the second ascent of Aprica, which was also the stage finish, Basso, Nibali, and Scarponi held an advantage of under a minute over Arroyo, Sastre, Gadret, Vinokourov, and Evans, who had come together into a single chase group. Although the Aprica was a much easier climb than the Mortirolo, the leading trio put time into the Arroyo group for the entirety of the climb. Basso and Nibali, being teammates, worked together to drive the group to get as big a time gap as possible to put Basso in the pink jersey and potentially Nibali onto the Giro's podium. Scarponi did very little work in the group, and as such was the freshest in the sprint for the stage win. Nibali allowed Basso second place to get him the bigger time bonus. With 2'27" in hand to Basso coming into the day, and a 12-second bonus already lost, Arroyo had to finish the stage no more than 2'15" slower than the stage winner to keep the pink jersey. The Arroyo group was not nearly as fresh as the leaders during the climb and did not come close to that time, finishing over three minutes back. Basso took the pink jersey for the first time since winning the race overall in 2006
, but noted after the stage that while the team had worked well on this day, there was another very difficult day ahead of them before the time trial in Verona.
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|General Classification after Stage 19
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to Passo del Tonale, 178 km (110.6 mi)
The Passo di Gavia
, at 2618 m (8,589.2 ft) in elevation, was the Cima Coppi, the highest point in the Giro. It was the penultimate climb on the course, before the finish at the Passo del Tonale. The course briefly entered Switzerland for the Forcola di Livigno climb, which features almost 2000 m (6,561.7 ft) of vertical gain. This stage contained the most climbing of any in this Giro, going up 6320 m (20,734.9 ft) among five mountains.
For weeks leading up to this stage, there had been speculation that the route would have to be altered due to the amount of snow that had accumulated on the Gavia. An alternative route, involving a different ascent of the Passo del Mortirolo than was used in stage 19, was proposed. It was ultimately deemed unnecessary to alter the route, as the roads on the Gavia were cleared and there was no snowfall the day the stage was run. The roads were lined with banks of piled up snow as the riders contested the stage.
Several inconsequential breakaway attempts occurred in the first two hours of racing, with no group getting more than about a minute on the pink jersey group at any time. Finally, over the Passo di Eira and the Passo di Foscagno, the day's second and third of five climbs, Johan Tschopp and Gilberto Simoni
established themselves as the day's signature breakaway. Carlos Sastre
and Alexander Vinokourov
were in a chase group between the leading duo and the pink jersey group. Much as they had in the previous day, rode a hard tempo that effectively isolated members of the other teams while protecting race leader Ivan Basso
and squad co-captain Vincenzo Nibali
. Sastre and Vinokourov's group was not ahead of the race leader for long, and they were brought back during the ascent of the Gavia.
In the front of the race, Tschopp and Simoni approached the summit of the Gavia together. Tschopp easily outkicked the veteran Italian to claim the prize that went along with winning the Cima Coppi and Simoni never caught back up to him, finishing 6'50" back on the stage, in 32nd. The pink jersey group was next to the summit. Once over the top, previous race leader David Arroyo
faced the decision of whether to ride a hard descent as he had on the Mortirolo the day before. He stayed with Basso for the descent, seemingly content to keep his second place in the overall standings.
As the Giro was the final event of Simoni's career and this was the Giro's final road race stage, Simoni was approached by a journalist on a motorbike for an interview as he climbed the Passo del Tonale. Tschopp rode the Tonale alone and stayed out front to the conclusion of the race, getting the first Giro stage win for a Swiss rider since Alex Zülle
in 1998
.
The pink jersey group ascended the Tonale just behind Tschopp. Michele Scarponi
put in an attack about a kilometer from the finish of the stage that succeeded in getting him, Basso, and Cadel Evans
clear while leaving Nibali, Vinokourov, Arroyo, and others behind. A few hundred meters from the finish, Evans put in a finishing kick that gained him a further 9 seconds over the other two. The day's results put Scarponi a single second behind Nibali for the podium, but with Nibali recognized as the far superior time trialist of the two, there stood to be little changed by the Verona time trial that closed out the race.
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, 15.3 km (9.5 mi) (individual time trial
)
For the third consecutive year, the Giro concluded with an individual time trial. There were several sharp turns in the course and a categorized climb in the middle of it. The finish line was just outside the Arena di Verona. After crossing it, the riders rode into the stadium where a very large crowd had assembled to see the final podium presentations.
Much as it had in the time trial which closed out the 2009 Giro, the winning time came relatively early in this stage. 's Gustav Larsson stopped the clock in 20'19" as the 80th man to the leave the starthouse, out of the 139 riders who finished the Giro. He was confident in his time, and was worried about only two rivals among the nearly 60 riders who were to follow him – stage one winner Bradley Wiggins
and Italian national time trial champion Marco Pinotti
. Wiggins was 12 seconds off Larsson's pace at the intermediate time check, which Larsson took to mean he could not beat his time at the finish line since Larsson is the better of the two in the downhills. He was nervous in watching Pinotti take the course near the end of the day, and the Italian champion posted a better time than Larsson at the intermediate time check, but he faded as the course went on and was two seconds slower than Larsson at the finish line.
Little was to be decided with regards to the overall standings. Race leader Ivan Basso
and second place man David Arroyo
were recognized as roughly equal against the clock, and even if Arroyo were considerably better it would be difficult to make up 1'15" in such a short course. Michele Scarponi
trailed Vincenzo Nibali
by a single second for the last step on the podium, but was a poorer time trialist and did not make up the deficit. Arroyo and Scarponi both conceded time, but remained in their previous overall positions of second and fourth, respectively. Giro champion Basso was 15th on the day, 42 seconds back of Larsson. He named this Giro win as much sweeter than his first, in 2006
, as he had to fight for it in the race's difficult final week after sustaining a crash in Tuscany and mistakenly ceding a great deal of time to Arroyo in L'Aquila. The team proved dominant in the race's final results, having Basso and Nibali on the podium and winning both the Trofeo Fast Team and Trofeo Super Team classifications. The other jersey awards were all won by Australian riders – Cadel Evans
won the points classification, Matthew Lloyd
the mountains classification, and Richie Porte
the youth classification.
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|Final General Classification
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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...
took place on 20 May in Città Sant'Angelo
Città Sant'Angelo
Città Sant'Angelo is a town and comune in the province of Pescara, Abruzzo, Italy.-History:Located in the eastern portion of the Vestine region. Mentioned by Plinius as one of four Vestini cities, Angelus or Angulum, where today Città Sant’Angelo stands. It is cited from the 12th century as...
, and the race concluded with stage 21 in Verona
Verona
Verona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
on 30 May. Seven of the last ten stages in the race contained mountain climbs, including the uphill 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...
to Plan de Corones four days before the end of the race. The last eight stages were clustered in northeast Italy, with six summit finishes among them.
One of the highlights of the second half of the Giro was Monte Zoncolan
Monte Zoncolan
Monte Zoncolan is a mountain in the Carnic Alps, located in the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy. It is one of the most demanding climbs in professional road bicycle racing, having been used in the Giro d'Italia four times and the Giro Donne once...
; although its peak is not as high as other climbs in the race, its gradients are extremely difficult, averaging at 12% with maximum stretches of 22%. 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...
won this stage, and in so doing positioned himself well for the conclusion of the race.
As the second half of the Giro began, young Australian 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....
held the race leadership by way of having been in a fortunate 50-rider strong breakaway in stage 11. The first two stages of the Giro's second half were flat and did not alter the overall standings in any significant way. A mountain climb to Monte Grappa in stage 14 transferred the race leader's pink jersey to David Arroyo
David Arroyo
David Arroyo Durán is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding on the UCI ProTeam . He is one of the best climbers on his team along with team leader Alejandro Valverde. After Valverde crashed on the first week of the 2006 Tour de France, Arroyo was made team leader, until Pereiro claimed...
of the team. Arroyo, a skilled descender, tried to hold off 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 the team in the Giro's final stages, but on a relatively easy climb to Aprica
Aprica
Aprica is a town and comune in the province of Sondrio, Lombardy, northern Italy. It is located on the eponymous pass, the most favourable one connecting Valtellina to Val Camonica.Its main activity is winter tourism.-External links:* * *...
in stage 19, Basso took the pink jersey for the first time en route to his second career Giro crown.
| 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 12
20 May 2010 — Città Sant'AngeloCittà Sant'Angelo
Città Sant'Angelo is a town and comune in the province of Pescara, Abruzzo, Italy.-History:Located in the eastern portion of the Vestine region. Mentioned by Plinius as one of four Vestini cities, Angelus or Angulum, where today Città Sant’Angelo stands. It is cited from the 12th century as...
to Porto Recanati
Porto Recanati
Porto Recanati is a town and comune in the centre of Italy, on the eastern coast on the Adriatic sea. It is located in the province of Macerata, in the Marche region.-Overview:...
, 191 km (118.7 mi)
There were two small categorized climbs toward the end of the stage, the first of which marked the race's entrance into the province of Macerata
Province of Macerata
The Province of Macerata is a province in the Marche region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Macerata.It has an area of 2,774 km², and a total population of 301,701 . There are 57 comunes in the province, see Comunes of the Province of Macerata.-External links:*...
, on roads often visited by Tirreno–Adriatico. The riders saw the finish line in Porto Recanati twice, taking a finishing circuit in the town.
's Rick Flens
Rick Flens
Rick Flens is a Dutch professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam Rabobank.-Palmares:2006...
attacked 9 km (5.6 mi) into the stage, to form the day's principal breakaway. He rode alone for a time, but 32 km (19.9 mi) later, Yuriy Krivtsov
Yuriy Krivtsov
Yuriy Krivtsov is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . Ukrainian by birth, he became a naturalized French citizen in May 2010, and was able to change his nationality per the UCI effective with the 2011 season.- Palmares :1996...
and Olivier Kaisen
Olivier Kaisen
Olivier Kaisen is a Belgian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :2001200220032004- External links :**...
made the bridge to join him. The peloton was mindful not to give them an enormous time gap like the breakaway in stage 11 had gotten. , working for the Giro's only double stage winner 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...
, took the pace, and kept the time gap manageable. The trio had 9'37" at one point, but as the circuit in Porto Recanati began, their advantage was just 1'10". With 14 km (8.7 mi) left to race, the three-rider breakaway was brought back into the peloton.
At that point, counterattacks began. Francesco Faili and four others briefly came clear, but they were not able to stay away for the stage win either. When their group was brought back, a ten-rider group containing several overall contenders, including 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...
, 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...
, 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...
, 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...
, 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 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...
got free on the third-category climb preceding the finish. Their advantage never extended beyond a few seconds, but they stayed away and finished 10 seconds ahead of the rest of the peloton. Filippo Pozzato
Filippo Pozzato
Filippo "Pippo" Pozzato is an Italian road racing cyclist with UCI ProTour Team Katusha.-Career:...
, the strongest sprinter in the group and the rider with the least overall chances, won the stage. Pozzato was the first Italian rider to win a stage in this Giro, and it was his first career Giro stage win.
Behind them, in the peloton, 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...
was the most notable rider to miss the selection. He tried to force the pace to bring the break back, but clashed with Daniele Righi
Daniele Righi
Daniele Righi is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam Lampre-Fondital.- External links :*...
at the front of the peloton. Righi was trying to ride a much slower pace to allow his teammate Cunego the chance to stay away for victory. Evans and Righi nearly came to blows after the stage. They were both later fined by the UCI, though they shook hands and made up before the next stage. The top ten to the overall standings were unchanged by the day's results.
Stage 12 Result
|
s.t. | ||
| 6 | s.t. | ||
| 7 | s.t. | ||
| 8 | s.t. | ||
| 9 | s.t. | ||
| 10 | s.t. |
||
|General Classification after Stage 12
| 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" |
|}
Stage 13
21 May 2010 — Porto Recanati to CesenaticoCesenatico
Cesenatico is a port town with about 20,000 inhabitants on the Adriatic coast of Italy. It is located in the province of Forlì-Cesena in the region of Emilia-Romagna, about 30 km south of Ravenna...
, 222 km (137.9 mi)
The first two-thirds of the course was mainly flat, following the Adriatic coast. The route then cut inland for two climbs, including one with a maximum gradient of 18%. The stage finished with 40 km (24.9 mi) of descending or flat racing. The arrival town of Cesenatico was the hometown of Marco Pantani
Marco Pantani
Marco Pantani was an Italian road racing cyclist, widely considered one of the best climbers in professional road bicycle racing...
, and the stage commemorated him.
Seventeen riders from 16 teams formed the day's breakaway, coming together as a cohesive group after 62 km (38.5 mi) of racing. was the only team with two riders in the move; they were Joan Horrach
Joan Horrach
Joan Horrach Ripoll is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist. He rides on the UCI ProTour for .- Results and Teams :2000 – Maia-MSS2001 – Milaneza-MSS...
and Sergei Klimov. Iban Mayoz
Iban Mayoz
Iban Mayoz Exteberria is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, currently not under contract to any team...
in 26th overall was the highest-placed man in the group, over 16 minutes behind race leader 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....
, so the peloton had little interest in chasing this escape group. Their maximum advantage over the main field was eight and a half minutes. On the Perticara climb, the first of the day, Vladimir Karpets
Vladimir Karpets
Vladimir Alexandrovich Karpets is a Russian road bicycle racer currently riding for UCI ProTeam , most notable for winning the white jersey for best young rider in the 2004 Tour de France. Karpets is a two-time Olympian. At the 2000 Summer Olympics, Karpets competed in the men's team pursuit and...
, who had been in 19th overall and represented a much bigger overall threat than anyone in the escape, attacked and came clear of the peloton. He eventually found Horrach, who paced him as far as he could before hitting the wall. tried to mount a chase to bring back Karpets, but he stayed away and gained two minutes against the peloton. He also moved up five places in the overall standings, passing both 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 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...
to be 14th overall at day's end.
On the descent of the Perticara, various riders in the slightly depleted leading group attacked, but none succeeded in escaping. Kalle Kriit
Kalle Kriit
Kale Kriit is an Estonian professional racing cyclist who rides for UCI ProTeam . His nickname is Estonian Emperor.-References:...
, Mayoz, 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...
, Mauro Facci
Mauro Facci
Mauro Facci is an Italian professional road bicycle racer.- Victories :20042005-Notes and references:...
, and Cameron Meyer
Cameron Meyer
Cameron Meyer is an Australian professional racing cyclist, riding for UCI ProTeam . He started cycling at the age of 13 in 2001 and first represented his country at the World Junior Track Championships in 2005. Meyer won his first senior World Championship in the Points Race in Pruszków, Poland...
eventually took a lead over the others for a few kilometers, though most of the breakaway group again came together as the finish line neared. Craig Lewis
Craig Lewis (cyclist)
Craig Lewis is an American professional road bicycle racer riding for the UCI ProTeam .In 2004, while riding for , Lewis was gravely injured when he was struck by a car during an individual time trial at the Tour de Georgia...
tried to solo for the stage win with an attack from 1500 m (4,921.3 ft) out. He seemed poised for victory for a few moments, but the group caught him 100 m (328.1 ft) from the end of the stage. Manuel Belletti
Manuel Belletti
Manuel Belletti is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI Professional Continental team .-Palmares:20082009...
from the small team outsprinted 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...
to win the stage. Belletti is from the area where the stage ended. He recalled after the stage that in his youth his father would take him to see Pantani ride, and he dedicated the victory to both of them. The peloton finished 7'28" back on the stage, but other than for Karpets' attack there was no major change to the overall standings.
Stage 13 Result
|
s.t. | ||
| 3 | s.t. | ||
| 4 | s.t. | ||
| 5 | s.t. | ||
| 6 | s.t. | ||
| 7 | s.t. | ||
| 8 | s.t. | ||
| 9 | s.t. | ||
| 10 | + 5" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 13
| 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" |
|}
Stage 14
22 May 2010 — FerraraFerrara
Ferrara is a city and comune in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. It is situated 50 km north-northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream of the Po River, located 5 km north...
to Asolo (Monte Grappa)
Asolo
Asolo is a town and comune in the Veneto Region of Northern Italy. It is known as "The Pearl of the province of Treviso", and also as "The City of a Hundred Horizons" for its mountain settings.-History:...
, 201 km (124.9 mi)
Monte Grappa, which used to feature frequently in the Giro, was the first of several major climbs in the Giro's final week. It was the only categorized climb in this stage, and reached with just over 40 km (24.9 mi) remaining. The race took the hardest route up the climb, which averages 8% gradients with maximum gradients of 14%.
The pace was high in the peloton as the stage began. This was one of the only stages in the Giro to this point run in nice weather. After 35 km (21.7 mi) were covered, and nearly an hour spent racing, Markus Eibegger
Markus Eibegger
Markus Eibegger is an Austrian professional road bicycle racer for Tabriz Petrochemical Cycling Team. He is the 2009 Austrian National Road Race Champion.- Palmares :2006...
instigated the day's breakaway, being followed in his attack by four others. The peloton let them get an advantage of over eight minutes by the 60 km (37.3 mi) mark. The time gap hovered there until the Grappa began, at which point and led a coordinated chase. 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....
attacked out of the group of favorites and found his teammate Steven Cummings
Steven Cummings
Steven Cummings is an American comic book artist.-Biography:Presented his first professional work by DC Comics editor Bob Schreck, Steven Cummings penciled an unpublished inventory issue of Green Lantern featuring John Stewart...
, a member of the original breakaway, up the road. While Cummings paced him to a gap before cracking, Wiggins was unable to stay away for very long. 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...
was the next on the attack, drawing with him 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...
. 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 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...
made the bridge, and the four of them absorbed the remnants of the morning escape, quickly becoming the leading group on the road. The climb went above the tree line, meaning there was wind and rain facing the riders at the top of the Grappa. Basso was first over the line for the mountain sprint, but it was Nibali who took aggressive lines on the descent, soloing to the finish 23 seconds ahead of the other three. Basso did not work in the chase, protecting the interests of his teammate up the road, but took the sprint for second place and the 12 bonus seconds it afforded. The race lead transferred as a result of the day's racing; overnight leader 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....
finished over four minutes behind Nibali and lost the jersey to David Arroyo
David Arroyo
David Arroyo Durán is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding on the UCI ProTeam . He is one of the best climbers on his team along with team leader Alejandro Valverde. After Valverde crashed on the first week of the 2006 Tour de France, Arroyo was made team leader, until Pereiro claimed...
. Arroyo also lost time on the stage, but did not lose as much. Having also been in the important breakaway in stage 11, Arroyo was in position to take the pink jersey.
Stage 14 Result
|
+ 23" | ||
| 3 | + 23" | ||
| 4 | + 23" | ||
| 5 |
|
| align="right"| + 1' 34"
|-
| 6
|
|
| align="right"| + 2' 25"
|-
| 7
|
|
| align="right"| + 2' 25"
|-
| 8
|
|
| align="right"| + 2' 25"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 2' 25"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 2' 25"
|}
||
|General Classification after Stage 14
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | |
+ 39" | |
| 3 | + 2' 12" | ||
| 4 | + 2' 35" | ||
| 5 | + 3' 52" | ||
| 6 | + 5' 27" | ||
| 7 | + 6' 32" | ||
| 8 | + 6' 51" | ||
| 9 | + 7' 15" | ||
| 10 | + 7' 26" |
|}
Stage 15
23 May 2010 — MestreMestre
Mestre is a city part of the comune of Venice, in Veneto, northern Italy.The city is connected to Venice by a large rail and road bridge, called Ponte della Libertà ....
to Zoncolan
Monte Zoncolan
Monte Zoncolan is a mountain in the Carnic Alps, located in the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy. It is one of the most demanding climbs in professional road bicycle racing, having been used in the Giro d'Italia four times and the Giro Donne once...
, 218 km (135.5 mi)
The first 70 km (43.5 mi) of this stage were flat, preceding some heavy climbing. The finish was on the 10.1 km (6.3 mi) long Monte Zoncolan, with an average gradient of 12%, and stretches of up to 22%. It was preceded on the course by three other climbs. This was the third passage of the Giro over the Zoncolan; 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...
won each of the first two, in 2003
2003 Giro d'Italia
The 2003 Giro d'Italia of cycling, the 86th running of the race, was held from 10 May to 1 June 2003, consisting of 21 stages for a total of 3,472 km, ridden at an average speed of 38.828 km/h. It was won by Gilberto Simoni....
and 2007
2007 Giro d'Italia
The 2007 Giro d'Italia was the 90th running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It took place from 12 May to 3 June 2007. The race began in Sardinia and finished in Milan, and featured five mountain top finishes, of which one was an individual time trial...
.
In the flat section of the course, six riders opened up a substantial lead on the peloton. These were Ludovic Turpin
Ludovic Turpin
Ludovic Turpin is a French professional road racing cyclist. He rides for UCI Professional Continental team .- Career accomplishments :1999 – Casino...
, Jackson Rodriguez
Jackson Rodriguez
Jackson Jesús Rodríguez Ortíz is a Venezuelan professional road bicycle racer for UCI Professional Continental team .- Palmarès :2005...
, Guillaume Le Floch
Guillaume Le Floch
Guillaume Le Floch is a French road bicycle racer who is currently riding for UCI Professional Continental team .-Palmares:200520062007-External links:* *...
, Nico Sijmens
Nico Sijmens
Nico Sijmens is a professional road racing cyclist currently riding for UCI ProTeam Cofidis.- Cycling career :20042005...
, 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 Francesco Reda
Francesco Reda
Francesco Reda is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam Quick Step.-External links:...
. The peloton gave them 14 minutes, but with the massive Zoncolan climb ahead, there was little chance that they would stay away. , one of the only squads that still had all nine riders in the Giro, drove a very hard pace in the main field when the climbing began. The time gap fell slowly on the day's first climb, the Sella Chianzutanis, but the second, the Passo Duron, was far steeper and took its toll on the leaders. There were five left out front with just over three minutes' advantage on a depleted peloton of about 25 riders able to keep 's pace.
The Zoncolan climb completely broke the race open. Very few riders climbed the mountain together, and the overall favorites quickly absorbed the remnants of the morning breakaway. An attack from 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...
opened things up in the favorites' group, 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...
was the first to respond. Basso drew with him 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 ....
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...
, as 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...
, 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....
all fell off the pace. Wiggins cracked badly as the Zoncolan climb wore on, and lost more than 25 minutes, to fall conclusively out of any overall contention. Race leader David Arroyo
David Arroyo
David Arroyo Durán is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding on the UCI ProTeam . He is one of the best climbers on his team along with team leader Alejandro Valverde. After Valverde crashed on the first week of the 2006 Tour de France, Arroyo was made team leader, until Pereiro claimed...
was also dropped on the climb.
Basso put in repeated attacks in the front of the race. He succeeded in dropping Pinotti and Scarponi, but Evans held the pace for a while. Finally, with 3.7 km (2.3 mi) left to race, Basso was able to drop the Australian, and soloed through the hardest parts of the climb for victory by over a minute. This gap was the largest among the contenders, as from Evans in second to Arroyo in 11th only two and a half minutes passed. Arroyo kept the pink jersey, but Basso's deficit in the overall standings was greatly reduced, as he leapt from 11th to third in the general classification with the day's results.
Stage 15 Result
|
+ 1' 19" | ||
| 3 | + 1' 30" | ||
| 4 | + 1' 58" | ||
| 5 | + 2' 26" | ||
| 6 | + 2' 44" | ||
| 7 | + 3' 07" | ||
| 8 | + 3' 20" | ||
| 9 | + 3' 31" | ||
| 10 | + 3' 46" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 15
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | |
+ 2' 35" | |
| 3 | + 3' 33" | ||
| 4 | + 4' 21" | ||
| 5 | |
+ 4' 43" | |
| 6 |
|
| align="right"| + 5' 51"
|-
| 7
|
|
| align="right"| + 6' 08"
|-
| 8
|
|
| align="right"| + 6' 34"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 7' 12"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 8' 13"
|}
|}
Stage 16
25 May 2010 — MareoMareo
Mareo is a comune in South Tyrol in the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about 90 km northeast of Trento and about 50 km northeast of Bolzano .-Geography:...
to Plan de Corones, 12.9 km (8 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...
)
After the second rest day, in Friuli
Friuli
Friuli is an area of northeastern Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, i.e. the province of Udine, Pordenone, Gorizia, excluding Trieste...
, the peloton faced the Giro's third race against the clock, and second individual race. It consisted of the climb to Plan de Corones, visited for the second time in the Giro's history. With 1080 m (3,543.3 ft) of vertical gain in 12.9 km (8 mi), the climb had an average gradient of 8.5%. Its steepest stretches, in the final kilometer, were on a 24% grade, and the final 5.2 km of the course is on a dirt road.
Riders were staggered into three groups of approximately 50, with a 90 minute break in between the groups. This was necessary because there was not enough room at the top of the Plan de Corones to hold the entire Giro peloton and caravan; during the breaks, the riders who had just ridden the climb descended the same way they came up. The course was run on a narrow access road to a ski resort.
The best time through the first two groups came from 's Rigoberto Urán
Rigoberto Urán
Rigoberto Urán Urán is a Colombian professional road racing cyclist, currently riding for UCI ProTeam .-Early life:Urán's first cycling race was at the age of 14, three months before his father was accidentally killed in a gunfight related to the drug war in Colombia...
, who stopped the clock in 43' 04". Early in the third group came former Giro champion 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...
, who was over 90 seconds better than Urán to claim the top spot. Garzelli's ride held up to the end of the day as the stage winning time, Garzelli's first Giro stage win since 2007. He expressed surprise at his win when asked after the stage, and said it was one of his "nicest" wins of his career. The biggest surprise of the day was 's John Gadret
John Gadret
John Gadret is a French professional racing cyclist in cyclo-cross and road racing disciplines for UCI ProTour team . He became a stagiaire for Cofidis in 2003 before turning professional with the team in 2004....
turning in a third place ride, the only rider other than Evans within a minute of Garzelli's winning time.
Later on came the Giro's overall favorites. Among them, 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...
turned in the best ride, second on the day 42 seconds the lesser of Garzelli despite having the best time at the intermediate time check. 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...
lost more time, with a 19th place ride dropping two minutes. 's two leaders 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 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...
both had top-ten rides to solidify their positions in the standings, though Evans closed his deficit to Basso considerably with his ride and leapfrogged Sastre in the standings. Race leader David Arroyo
David Arroyo
David Arroyo Durán is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding on the UCI ProTeam . He is one of the best climbers on his team along with team leader Alejandro Valverde. After Valverde crashed on the first week of the 2006 Tour de France, Arroyo was made team leader, until Pereiro claimed...
was 16th, over two minutes back on the day, but still had enough time in hand to retain the pink jersey.
Stage 16 Result
|
+ 1' 37" | ||
| 9 | + 1' 41" | ||
| 10 | + 1' 46" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 16
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | + 2' 27" | ||
| 3 | |
+ 2' 36" | |
| 4 | |
+ 3' 09" | |
| 5 | + 4' 36" | ||
| 6 | + 4' 53" | ||
| 7 |
|
| align="right"| + 5' 12"
|-
| 8
|
|
| align="right"| + 5' 25"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 8' 57"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 9' 13"
|}
|}
Stage 17
26 May 2010 — BruneckBruneck
Bruneck is the largest town in the Puster Valley in the Italian province of South Tyrol. Bruneck lies at the confluence of the Ahr with the Rienz Bruneck is the largest town in the Puster Valley in the Italian province of South Tyrol. Bruneck lies at the confluence of the Ahr with the Rienz...
to Pejo Terme
Peio
Peio is a comune in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about 50 km northwest of Trento...
, 173 km (107.5 mi)
This was categorized as an intermediate stage. It included a summit stage finish, though a higher pass, the Passo delle Palade, occurs earlier in the stage.
This was described as the Giro's most controlled stage. After a morning breakaway of 19 riders took from 48 km (29.8 mi) into the stage, and rode a tempo at the front of the peloton to protect their general classification leaders, affording the stage win to one from the leading group.
Seventeen teams were represented in the break; and each had two riders in the group. Their time gap was a little over nine minutes for almost all of the stage. Mikhail Ignatiev set off on a solo bid for victory 28 km (17.4 mi) from the line, but he faded quickly and finished the stage with the peloton. At 20 km (12.4 mi) to go, 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...
put in an attack that broke the race open. The leaders no longer rode as a cohesive unit, and finished scattered ahead of the peloton. Sørensen's move was not destined for success, as he faded and finished the stage 11th. Daniel Moreno
Daniel Moreno
Daniel Moreno Fernández is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .In 2007 he won the Escalada a Montjuïc while riding for Relax-GAM...
then rode at the front of the race for a few kilometers before the chasing group of 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....
, Steven Kruijswijk
Steven Kruijswijk
Steven Kruiswijk is a Dutch road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam Rabobank. In 2009 he won the Under 23 category of the Dutch National Road Race Championships-Palmares:200720092010...
, and Damien Monier
Damien Monier
Damien Monier is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI Professional Continental team Cofidis.- Palmares :2003200420052010- External links :***...
passed him up. The three of them rode together for a while before Monier took off on the Pejo Terme climb, soloing to victory half a minute ahead of Kruijswijk and Hondo. The stage win was Monier's first professional victory. It was the sprinter Hondo who climbed to second on the stage, saying afterward that he had had "good legs" despite the stage profile not favoring him. The race's overall favorites finished 9'53" back on the stage, with 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...
gaining one second on the rest of his group at the finish line. 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....
, 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...
, 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...
, and Robert Kišerlovski
Robert Kiserlovski
Robert Kišerlovski is a Croatian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam . He turned professional in 2005.At the 2011 Paris–Nice, Kišerlovski crashed on a slippery downhill and slid underneath a parked truck, being caught underneath it for several minutes and needing eight stitches.-...
all lost a few seconds, but the composition of the top ten in the overall classification remained the same as the day before.
Stage 17 Result
|
+ 2' 01" | ||
| 10 | + 2' 07" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 17
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | + 2' 27" | ||
| 3 | |
+ 2' 44" | |
| 4 | |
+ 3' 09" | |
| 5 | + 4' 41" | ||
| 6 | + 4' 53" | ||
| 7 |
|
| align="right"| + 5' 12"
|-
| 8
|
|
| align="right"| + 5' 24"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 9' 21"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 9' 32"
|}
|}
Stage 18
27 May 2010 — Levico TermeLevico Terme
Levico Terme is a comune in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about 15 km southeast of Trento...
to Brescia
Brescia
Brescia is a city and comune in the region of Lombardy in northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, between the Mella and the Naviglio, with a population of around 197,000. It is the second largest city in Lombardy, after the capital, Milan...
, 151 km (93.8 mi)
This stage was short and flat, with no categorized climbs. It headed south from Levico Terme to Brescia in Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
.
After missing out on the bunch finishes earlier in the Giro, sprinter 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...
, the season's most prolific winner, made a point of continuing through the mountain stages earlier in the Giro's last week with victory in this stage in mind. Olivier Kaisen
Olivier Kaisen
Olivier Kaisen is a Belgian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :2001200220032004- External links :**...
and Alan Marangoni
Alan Marangoni
Alan Marangoni is a professional Italian road cyclist, currently riding for . He began his career as a track cyclist, including a national title at the elite level, but switched to road cycling after signing with the Under-23 team U.S. Fausto Coppi Gazzera Videa, with whom he rode for three seasons...
were the day's principal breakaway, but rode a tempo at the front of the peloton that kept them from getting any more than three minutes' advantage. They timed the catch ideally, reeling in Kaisen with 3 km (1.9 mi) remaining in the stage and Marangoni a kilometer later. Marcel Sieberg
Marcel Sieberg
Marcel Sieberg is a German road racing cyclist who rides for .- Palmarès :1998...
and František Raboň
František Rabon
František Raboň is a Czech road racing cyclist for UCI ProTeam .Raboň turned pro in 2006 with German outfit , after having been European road champion the previous season and 3 times Czech Under 23 time trial and one time road race champion.-Palmares:200320042005František Raboň is a Czech road...
rode on either side of Greipel to keep him protected and keep any other sprinter from holding his wheel. Greipel accelerated inside the final few hundred meters of the stage and took the victory ahead of 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...
and Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Tiziano Dall'Antonia
Tiziano Dall'Antonia is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .-Palmarès:20052007-External links:...
. There was no change to the overall standings with the day's results.
Stage 18 Result
|
s.t. | ||
| 8 | s.t. | ||
| 9 | s.t. | ||
| 10 | s.t. |
||
|General Classification after Stage 18
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | + 2' 27" | ||
| 3 | |
+ 2' 44" | |
| 4 | |
+ 3' 09" | |
| 5 | + 4' 41" | ||
| 6 | + 4' 53" | ||
| 7 |
|
| align="right"| + 5' 12"
|-
| 8
|
|
| align="right"| + 5' 24"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 9' 21"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 9' 32"
|}
|}
Stage 19
28 May 2010 — Brescia to ApricaAprica
Aprica is a town and comune in the province of Sondrio, Lombardy, northern Italy. It is located on the eponymous pass, the most favourable one connecting Valtellina to Val Camonica.Its main activity is winter tourism.-External links:* * *...
, 195 km (121.2 mi)
This stage contained four categorized climbs, visiting the summit finish in Aprica once before the actual conclusion of the stage. 32 km (19.9 mi) from the finish of the stage was the Passo del Mortirolo
Passo del Mortirolo
The Mortirolo Pass is a high mountain pass in the Alps in Italy. Also known as Passo di Foppa, it connects Mazzo di Valtellina and Val Camonica...
, which was only marginally less steep than the Zoncolan, and was 2.7 km (1.7 mi) longer. After the descent from the Mortirolo, a 15 km (9.3 mi) long ramp back to Aprica was the finish.
The first few kilometers of this stage were flat, and during this time the peloton stayed together. After an hour of racing, nine riders – Jan Bakelandts, Francesco Faili, Branislau Samoilau
Branislau Samoilau
Branislau Samoilau is a Belarusian professional road bicycle racer. He rides for UCI ProTeam , having ridden professionally for between 2007 and 2008, a brief stint for in 2009, and for . Samoilau has won the National Road Race of Belarus in 2007, but his strength lies in the individual time...
, Luca Mazzanti
Luca Mazzanti
Luca Mazzanti is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who rides for UCI Professional Continental team .-Palmares :Source:1998...
, Yuriy Krivtsov
Yuriy Krivtsov
Yuriy Krivtsov is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . Ukrainian by birth, he became a naturalized French citizen in May 2010, and was able to change his nationality per the UCI effective with the 2011 season.- Palmares :1996...
, Jackson Rodriguez
Jackson Rodriguez
Jackson Jesús Rodríguez Ortíz is a Venezuelan professional road bicycle racer for UCI Professional Continental team .- Palmarès :2005...
, William Bonnet
William Bonnet
William Bonnet is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI Professional Continental team .- Palmares :200020052006...
, Xavier Tondó
Xavier Tondó
Xavier Tondo Volpini was a Spanish professional road racing cyclist who specialized in mountain stages of bicycle races- Death :...
, and Leonardo Duque
Leonardo Duque
Leonardo Fabio Duque is a Colombian professional road racing cyclist. After stage 19 of the 2009 Tour de France, Duque was named the most combative rider of the stage after aggressively pacing a breakaway....
– established a gap over the main field. They had an advantage of 8'27" at the stage's feed zone. It was at this point that the day's climbing began, with the first visit to Aprica. On this climb, 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...
attacked out of the peloton and came clear, bridging up to his teammate Faili who had intentionally fallen off the pace of the leaders to work for Garzelli. In the peloton, the team 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 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...
, one of the only squads that still had all nine riders, was riding a very hard tempo to try to isolate the competition while protecting their leaders. Through the first ascent of Aprica and the first-category Trivigno climb, this was how the race was, with the remnants of the morning breakaway out in the front of the race, Garzelli about a minute behind, and then the rapidly depleting group of overall favorites behind him.
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...
was the first overall contender dropped by 's pace, as Sylwester Szmyd
Sylwester Szmyd
Sylwester Szmyd is a Polish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam .- Major achievements :200120022003...
drove the group up the Mortirolo. In short order, everyone from the morning breakaway was reabsorbed, leaving only Garzelli out front. As one by one 's support riders rode increasingly harder and harder paces before bonking and falling off, many overall contenders followed Cunego out the back of what had been the pink jersey group. 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...
was the next to lose contact, followed by 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...
fell off numerous times and fought back before being dropped for good near the summit. Race leader David Arroyo
David Arroyo
David Arroyo Durán is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding on the UCI ProTeam . He is one of the best climbers on his team along with team leader Alejandro Valverde. After Valverde crashed on the first week of the 2006 Tour de France, Arroyo was made team leader, until Pereiro claimed...
rode the climb behind Evans and was immediately at risk of losing the pink jersey, as the lead group contained only Basso, Nibali, and 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...
, who crested the Mortirolo more than two minutes ahead of him.
Basso rode a conservative descent of the Mortirolo, and Nibali and Scarponi had to wait for him several times. Arroyo, a rider recognized as a skilled descender, rode very aggressively, catching and passing Sastre and John Gadret
John Gadret
John Gadret is a French professional racing cyclist in cyclo-cross and road racing disciplines for UCI ProTour team . He became a stagiaire for Cofidis in 2003 before turning professional with the team in 2004....
, then Evans, then Vinokourov and came within 30 seconds of reaching the leading Italian trio. Garzelli, for his part, had also ridden an aggressive descent of the Mortirolo, but he crashed and would abandon the race the next day due to his injuries.
Facing the second ascent of Aprica, which was also the stage finish, Basso, Nibali, and Scarponi held an advantage of under a minute over Arroyo, Sastre, Gadret, Vinokourov, and Evans, who had come together into a single chase group. Although the Aprica was a much easier climb than the Mortirolo, the leading trio put time into the Arroyo group for the entirety of the climb. Basso and Nibali, being teammates, worked together to drive the group to get as big a time gap as possible to put Basso in the pink jersey and potentially Nibali onto the Giro's podium. Scarponi did very little work in the group, and as such was the freshest in the sprint for the stage win. Nibali allowed Basso second place to get him the bigger time bonus. With 2'27" in hand to Basso coming into the day, and a 12-second bonus already lost, Arroyo had to finish the stage no more than 2'15" slower than the stage winner to keep the pink jersey. The Arroyo group was not nearly as fresh as the leaders during the climb and did not come close to that time, finishing over three minutes back. Basso took the pink jersey for the first time since winning the race overall in 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...
, but noted after the stage that while the team had worked well on this day, there was another very difficult day ahead of them before the time trial in Verona.
Stage 19 Result
|
+ 3' 05" | ||
| 5 | + 3' 05" | ||
| 6 | |
+ 3' 06" | |
| 7 | |
+ 3' 06" | |
| 8 | + 3' 06" | ||
| 9 | + 5' 27" | ||
| 10 | + 5' 27" |
||
|General Classification after Stage 19
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | + 51" | ||
| 3 | + 2' 30" | ||
| 4 | + 2' 49" | ||
| 5 | |
+ 4' 00" | |
| 6 | + 5' 32" | ||
| 7 | |
+ 6' 00" | |
| 8 |
|
| align="right"| + 6' 22"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 12' 44"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 13' 40"
|}
|}
Stage 20
29 May 2010 — BormioBormio
Bormio is a town and comune located in the province of Sondrio, Lombardy region of the Alps in northern Italy. It has a population of 4,200...
to Passo del Tonale, 178 km (110.6 mi)
The Passo di Gavia
Gavia Pass
Gavia Pass is a high mountain pass in the Italian Alps. It is the tenth highest paved road in the Alps.The pass lies in the Lombardy region and divides the province of Sondrio to the north and the province of Brescia to the south...
, at 2618 m (8,589.2 ft) in elevation, was the Cima Coppi, the highest point in the Giro. It was the penultimate climb on the course, before the finish at the Passo del Tonale. The course briefly entered Switzerland for the Forcola di Livigno climb, which features almost 2000 m (6,561.7 ft) of vertical gain. This stage contained the most climbing of any in this Giro, going up 6320 m (20,734.9 ft) among five mountains.
For weeks leading up to this stage, there had been speculation that the route would have to be altered due to the amount of snow that had accumulated on the Gavia. An alternative route, involving a different ascent of the Passo del Mortirolo than was used in stage 19, was proposed. It was ultimately deemed unnecessary to alter the route, as the roads on the Gavia were cleared and there was no snowfall the day the stage was run. The roads were lined with banks of piled up snow as the riders contested the stage.
Several inconsequential breakaway attempts occurred in the first two hours of racing, with no group getting more than about a minute on the pink jersey group at any time. Finally, over the Passo di Eira and the Passo di Foscagno, the day's second and third of five climbs, Johan Tschopp 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...
established themselves as the day's signature breakaway. 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 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...
were in a chase group between the leading duo and the pink jersey group. Much as they had in the previous day, rode a hard tempo that effectively isolated members of the other teams while protecting race leader 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 squad co-captain 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...
. Sastre and Vinokourov's group was not ahead of the race leader for long, and they were brought back during the ascent of the Gavia.
In the front of the race, Tschopp and Simoni approached the summit of the Gavia together. Tschopp easily outkicked the veteran Italian to claim the prize that went along with winning the Cima Coppi and Simoni never caught back up to him, finishing 6'50" back on the stage, in 32nd. The pink jersey group was next to the summit. Once over the top, previous race leader David Arroyo
David Arroyo
David Arroyo Durán is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding on the UCI ProTeam . He is one of the best climbers on his team along with team leader Alejandro Valverde. After Valverde crashed on the first week of the 2006 Tour de France, Arroyo was made team leader, until Pereiro claimed...
faced the decision of whether to ride a hard descent as he had on the Mortirolo the day before. He stayed with Basso for the descent, seemingly content to keep his second place in the overall standings.
As the Giro was the final event of Simoni's career and this was the Giro's final road race stage, Simoni was approached by a journalist on a motorbike for an interview as he climbed the Passo del Tonale. Tschopp rode the Tonale alone and stayed out front to the conclusion of the race, getting the first Giro stage win for a Swiss rider since Alex Zülle
Alex Zülle
Alex Zülle is a Swiss former professional road bicycle racer. During the 1990s he was one of the best cyclists in the world, winning the Vuelta a España twice and taking the second place in 1999 Tour de France. He was world time-trial champion in Lugano in 1996.-Early career:Zülle was born and...
in 1998
1998 Giro d'Italia
The 1998 Giro d'Italia of cycling, the 81st running of the race, was held from 16 May to 7 June 1998. It covered , in 22 stages, and it was won by Marco Pantani....
.
The pink jersey group ascended the Tonale just behind Tschopp. 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...
put in an attack about a kilometer from the finish of the stage that succeeded in getting him, Basso, 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...
clear while leaving Nibali, Vinokourov, Arroyo, and others behind. A few hundred meters from the finish, Evans put in a finishing kick that gained him a further 9 seconds over the other two. The day's results put Scarponi a single second behind Nibali for the podium, but with Nibali recognized as the far superior time trialist of the two, there stood to be little changed by the Verona time trial that closed out the race.
Stage 20 Result
|
General Classification after Stage 20
|
+ 7' 31" | |
| 8 | + 8' 55" | ||
| 9 | + 14' 06" | ||
| 10 | + 15' 00" |
|}
Stage 21
30 May 2010 — VeronaVerona
Verona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
, 15.3 km (9.5 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...
)
For the third consecutive year, the Giro concluded with an individual time trial. There were several sharp turns in the course and a categorized climb in the middle of it. The finish line was just outside the Arena di Verona. After crossing it, the riders rode into the stadium where a very large crowd had assembled to see the final podium presentations.
Much as it had in the time trial which closed out the 2009 Giro, the winning time came relatively early in this stage. 's Gustav Larsson stopped the clock in 20'19" as the 80th man to the leave the starthouse, out of the 139 riders who finished the Giro. He was confident in his time, and was worried about only two rivals among the nearly 60 riders who were to follow him – stage one winner 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 Italian national time trial champion 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 ....
. Wiggins was 12 seconds off Larsson's pace at the intermediate time check, which Larsson took to mean he could not beat his time at the finish line since Larsson is the better of the two in the downhills. He was nervous in watching Pinotti take the course near the end of the day, and the Italian champion posted a better time than Larsson at the intermediate time check, but he faded as the course went on and was two seconds slower than Larsson at the finish line.
Little was to be decided with regards to the overall standings. Race leader 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 second place man David Arroyo
David Arroyo
David Arroyo Durán is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding on the UCI ProTeam . He is one of the best climbers on his team along with team leader Alejandro Valverde. After Valverde crashed on the first week of the 2006 Tour de France, Arroyo was made team leader, until Pereiro claimed...
were recognized as roughly equal against the clock, and even if Arroyo were considerably better it would be difficult to make up 1'15" in such a short course. 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...
trailed 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...
by a single second for the last step on the podium, but was a poorer time trialist and did not make up the deficit. Arroyo and Scarponi both conceded time, but remained in their previous overall positions of second and fourth, respectively. Giro champion Basso was 15th on the day, 42 seconds back of Larsson. He named this Giro win as much sweeter than his first, in 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...
, as he had to fight for it in the race's difficult final week after sustaining a crash in Tuscany and mistakenly ceding a great deal of time to Arroyo in L'Aquila. The team proved dominant in the race's final results, having Basso and Nibali on the podium and winning both the Trofeo Fast Team and Trofeo Super Team classifications. The other jersey awards were all won by Australian riders – 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...
won the points classification, 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...
the mountains classification, and 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....
the youth classification.
Stage 21 Result
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+ 17" | ||
| 4 | |
+ 22" | |
| 5 | + 23" | ||
| 6 | + 23" | ||
| 7 | + 29" | ||
| 8 | + 32" | ||
| 9 | + 35" | ||
| 10 | + 37" |
||
|Final General Classification
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
||
| 2 | + 1' 51" | ||
| 3 | + 2' 37" | ||
| 4 | + 2' 50" | ||
| 5 | |
+ 3' 27" | |
| 6 |
|
| align="right"| + 7' 06"
|-
| 7
|
| align="right"| + 7' 22"
|-
| 8
|
|
| align="right"| + 9' 39"
|-
| 9
|
|
| align="right"| + 14' 20"
|-
| 10
|
|
| align="right"| + 14' 51"
|}
|}