Giro Intrigue Builds

by Chris... on Oct 28, 2008 5:01 PM EDT in News

In 2008, anticipation of the Giro d'Italia centered largely on the course, which cobbled several of the country's most notorious inclines into one hell of a challenging race. But the riders make the race, and that's where this Giro retreated from legend to something more ordinary. Mind you, it was a good race. But Damiano Cunego's decision to skip the Giro further diminished a thin home field. Then Alberto Contador's Tour exclusion set off a chain reaction of events that ended with the defending Tour champ in Palermo. Contador then reeled off a methodical, unspectacular overall victory, thanks to or in spite of minimal preparation. Add in some behavior by the purported heroes of the race that was later confirmed as suspicious, and you've got a great course playing host to a forgettable race.

But if the Giro ran third in overall competition quality among grand tours, that's about to change. While we don't know exactly how the course will unfold, it appears we might see one of the best fields in recent history at the centenary Giro. Lance Armstrong is going all-in. Ivan Basso is coming back. Cunego has reverted back to his old Giro focus (for now). And now you can probably add Carlos Sastre to the startlist. Undoubtedly there are plenty of others (Pellizotti, DiLuca, maybe Thomas Dekker??) who'll eventually sign up, meaning we could be in for a much more memorable, competitive Giro next spring.

Of course, big names don't necessarily mean big efforts. With the exception of the Italians, plenty of top names make a show of coming to Italy only to treat the race as conditioning. Sastre is a top candidate to "just get in some race miles," for example. But there are two factors which could upend the conventional wisdom. First, it's the centenary Giro, a special event, which as we saw in the 2003 Tour tends to give the riders a little extra motivation. Secondly, Contador's return to the Tour (and possible Vuelta defense) may make the Giro the only place where a top-flight grand tour contender will have an actual shot at winning. I'm not sure how much they care to admit it, but riders have seen enough of the Accountant at this point to gauge their chances against him in a three-week race. And it ain't pretty. As soon as they write off the Tour, the Giro will become the place to be, and to race hard.

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What about Menchov?

Is he doing the combination Giro-Tour again? He isn’t topfavorite but he’s gonna ride top 10 if he starts. MAybe he will attack to practise for the Tour..

Some say the best things in life, are one the inside.

by Frinking on Oct 28, 2008 6:05 PM EDT 0 recs

Attack? Menchov? Sorry what?

by Albertina on Oct 28, 2008 6:10 PM EDT up 0 recs

He did... you'll recall his rather unlucky spill...

… he was really turning the pedals in anger and the wheel just kicked out from under him and he bit it rather hard.

Sic gorgiamus allos subjectatos nunc.

by crashdan on Oct 28, 2008 8:38 PM EDT up 0 recs

Ah yes, true.

Still, it doesn’t happen often!

by Albertina on Oct 29, 2008 9:41 AM EDT up 0 recs

Yeah... it was a major bummer... the one time the guy takes a flyer and he pays the price for it...

Sic gorgiamus allos subjectatos nunc.

by crashdan on Oct 29, 2008 1:46 PM EDT up 0 recs

"Denis, you tried and failed miserably. The lesson is: never try"

Carlos Sastre - Tour de France winner - Born From Jets

by Jens on Oct 29, 2008 2:35 PM EDT up 0 recs

I expect it will be a strong field, but...

I can’t see top riders (other than those on Contador’s team) abandoning their Tour aspirations in fear of the Accountant. Armstrong in his prime was a much more daunting Tour foe that Contador is, and it didn’t stop Ullrich and Basso from showing up every year.

I won’t believe Armstrong is riding the Giro, much less going all-in, until I see it. If the early season resuls make it clear that Contador is the stronger rider, and would be the undisputed team leader at the Tour, then Armstrong will probably give his all at the Giro. Otherwise, not so much, I suspect. Of course, if Armstrong is clearly weaker than Contador, I doubt he’ll be any match for Basso.

Assuming Armstrong is riding near his former level, and focuses on a Giro win, it’s likely to come down to a two-man battle between him and Basso, with Basso having the edge on the climbs, and Armstrong in the cronos. Dekker would be an interesting rider to throw into the mix, but Lotto has never shown much interest in the Giro gc, and they may not have the climbing or time-trialling manpower to send strong teams to both the Giro and the Tour. Cunego will go for it, like he always does, and if the mountain stages aren’t too crazy, he may be in contention at least until the first crono in Liguria. That would be fun. Di Luca, too. He says he’ll concentrate on the classics next season, but if he thought he had a shot at the maglia rosa after seeing the Giro route, he might change his mind.

by Tifosa on Oct 28, 2008 6:36 PM EDT 0 recs

Speaking of (Yet to be announced)-Lotto

Wonder if the new VdB will be back for the Giro next year . . . if they think highly of Evans’ chances at the tour they’ll hold him till the TdF, but I think I’d rather see him ride for himself. I suspect he’s more likely than Dekker to ride as TBA-Lotto’s GC candidate.

Pellizotti’s role at Liquigas will will be interesting too. My guess is that he’ll be riding for Basso at the Giro and Kreuziger (or Nibali) will be given the TdF leadership. The question for numerous PdCers is whether Benna get’s shafted by a GC heavy team again and misses the 2009 Giro.

No mention of Gibo yet? I think he showed serious signs of decline this year but I think he’s coming back for one more shot next year?

by Rothko on Oct 28, 2008 7:03 PM EDT up 0 recs

Simoni?

Yes, he is riding one more season, so I’d expect him at the Giro. One wonders how his team-mate Scarponi will ride in a grand tour post-Puerto. He looked to be finding his legs in the late season Italian races recently.

Pellizotti will probably ride for Basso. But Nibali is definitely going to the Tour, and is planning to skip the Giro. That could change over the next oh six months or so before the race start. I wouldn’t be surprised if Benna rode both races – Giro and Tour.

by gavia on Oct 28, 2008 7:05 PM EDT up 0 recs

Benna doesn't strike me as the sort of sprinter who necessarily needs a massive lead out train.

As long as he gets to the last few kms in a nice position, he’s fairly good at fending for himself. He never had massive leadouts in this year’s Giro as far as I can remember. Leaky can surely find room for him. I jolly well hope so anyway ;-)

by Albertina on Oct 28, 2008 7:14 PM EDT up 0 recs

That's true

but it never stopped Lampre from leaving him out . . . from memory it was one of the reasons he wanted to switch to Liquigas.

by Rothko on Oct 28, 2008 7:22 PM EDT up 0 recs

Yes, that's right.

Liquigas do seem to value him though, perhaps more than Lampre did at times. They stated they’re banking on him in the classics next year when they gave reasons for not being able to offer Pozzato as much as he wanted. They also took a gamble with all the injury problems he’s had and obviously value him enough to continue with him as a banker even though this year’s foot problem is still lingering on. Someone of Benna’s talent deserves good treatment; he won 3 stages this year and who would bet against him doing similar next? Another ciclamino can only be a boon for Leaky and I don’t think it needs to come at the expense of Basso’s chances.

by Albertina on Oct 28, 2008 7:34 PM EDT up 0 recs

Scarponi was also riding well

for A&S (wasn’t it?) before he was suspended over OP in the first half of 2007 – so I expect he’ll do well next year . . . though perhaps not at the GT level.

by Rothko on Oct 28, 2008 7:22 PM EDT up 0 recs

Van den Broeck

I remember reading somewhere recently that he’s definitely part of the Tour support for Evans, not sure if that means he won’t be riding the Giro first. I’ll see if I can find where I read that as perhaps it clarifies…

by guidemd on Oct 28, 2008 7:41 PM EDT up 0 recs

Was Gibo's Giro that bad?

Ok he bonked one day in the rain, but apart from that I only remember him losing large chunks of time to the CERA brigade. If he can just remember to eat next year he stands a pretty good chance of getting on the podium again.

by Monty. on Oct 28, 2008 7:59 PM EDT up 0 recs

Gibo

seems more likely to be going for stage wins at next year’s race than making a serious run at the gc. He said this year that a stage win would mean a lot more to him than another podium placing (and he would have gotten one at Tirano if it hadn’t been for the CERA-fueled Sella — arghhhh!).

Unfortunately for Gibo and his many tifosi, the Dolomites stages next year may be too early — and perhaps too easy — for a likely Simoni stage win. The structure of the rumored final week is also not really in Gibo’s favor. He’s so strong that he’s at his greatest advantage when there are three or four really hard mountain stages in a row, as he demonstrated with his fantastic performance at Plan de Corones this year. Still, look for him to throw down on the Vesuvio and Block Haus stages, if the course rumors are true. Other than another Simoni Giro win, nothing would make the season for me like a stage win by Gibo at the Giro.

Forza Gibo!

by Tifosa on Oct 28, 2008 8:12 PM EDT up 0 recs

Armstrong

“I want the pink jersey”
http://www.gazzetta.it/Ciclismo/Primo_Piano/2008/10/14/int_armstrong.shtml

by lucybears on Oct 31, 2008 5:29 AM EDT up 0 recs

Armstrong vs. Basso part 2

and this time on Basso’s home turf! I do actually think that Armstrong will be at Giro, I do actually believe that he regrets never having raced it. Also the Giro route appears to be more suited towards him then the Tour. There are more TT’s and the climbing doesn’t appear to be as steep as in previous years. Now when it comes to going all in I think that the rumored early mountain stages will help. I believe that Lance will go for it on the first mountain stages as they are so early and if he does well and feels good then he will have to go for the win, as he will always want to win when he has the chance. We’ll see on the rest of the riders but it would be great to see the young guns go for it like Gesink, Dekker, and Andy Schleck.

by Phil H. on Oct 28, 2008 7:04 PM EDT 0 recs

With the course, as rumored?

It hardly matters who shows up. There will be bike racing.

by gavia on Oct 28, 2008 7:06 PM EDT 0 recs

lol. Exactly.

This Giro will be so much fun. I’d take any race at the moment actually….over two months of empty calendar to get through (the Amstel Curacao, while entertaining, doesn’t count!). The pain of it!

by Albertina on Oct 28, 2008 7:09 PM EDT up 0 recs

Can I just say

how awesome it is that the Giro is a hundred years old? A hundred years old! That’s fantastic. What a race. In honour of this fact, a beautiful passage from Buzzati’s great book (but actually written Ciro Verratti, on Buzzati’s day off):

We read on one placard attached to a pole a highly metaphoric message: “Coppi, with your legs of steel and your aerodynamic nose, you are our consolation,” and farther ahead we saw one similarly dedicated to the crowd’s other favorite: “Bartali, when you are on the Izoard, make them all cry.”

Aerodynamic nose is cool enough, but can you imagine anyone today saying to a cyclist: “you are our consolation”? Ah, the good old days.

by plinytheelder on Oct 28, 2008 7:29 PM EDT 0 recs

100 years

Might even get a mention on the Today Show?

Buzzati’s book… I can’t rule out the possibility that at some point I’ll run out of other topics and declare “Buzzati Month”, erasing all posts and comments not directed toward pointing out how great that book is. I pity anyone who tries to write the next Great Giro Book. It can’t be done.

"If writing too much about the Classics is wrong, I don't want to be right."

by Chris... on Oct 28, 2008 7:38 PM EDT up 0 recs

And next time the riders start complaining about it being too tough

Show them some of these photos from the last 40 years. (link found over at cicloweb)

A sample from 1965:

by Monty. on Oct 28, 2008 8:13 PM EDT up 0 recs

wow thanks those are great!

the ones with the fans are amazing – check this out!

by plinytheelder on Oct 28, 2008 9:07 PM EDT up 0 recs

Maybe i should go to Giro next year, instead of TdF????

by CycleGirl on Oct 28, 2008 7:41 PM EDT 0 recs

"maybe"??

I’m not one to talk, but as experiences go, people seem to rave about the less-hectic, more beauteous Giro.

"If writing too much about the Classics is wrong, I don't want to be right."

by Chris... on Oct 28, 2008 9:21 PM EDT up 0 recs

lol, yeah

I wasn’t going to say it, but can there be any doubt?

No maybe involved here :-)

by gavia on Oct 28, 2008 10:23 PM EDT up 0 recs

Yeah

What is this word, “maybe”, that you speak of? lol

by ursula on Oct 29, 2008 6:39 AM EDT up 0 recs

Interesting

hmmm I’m confused.. i have been thinking about it for a while, I’ll do a bit more research.. Thanks for your thoughts.. Damn it..

I’m interested in Albertina’s thoughts..

by CycleGirl on Oct 29, 2008 7:03 AM EDT 0 recs

I considered it quite seriously, and I really would love to go...

…but my friends are more keen on going to the Tour, and I do so want to be on the Ventoux as well. Possibly, just possibly, I might be able to nip across to Italy for a long weekend but money may be an issue as I’m planning to go to at least Paris Roubaix in the spring too. Really I do sometimes wish I lived in northern Italy! Then it would be so easy to do both, and Lombardy, and MSR etc etc.

by Albertina on Oct 29, 2008 9:23 AM EDT up 0 recs

You should ask Tifosa...

Tifosa has been to both races and can probably give you a good idea about what’s good about each.

Me, I’d go to the Giro, because I really love Italy, and I’d love to ride there. Also, the Giro is less crowded generally, the riders more accessible, and it’s easier to navigate around. But really, it depends on what you are into.

by gavia on Oct 29, 2008 12:10 PM EDT up 0 recs

I definitely prefer the Giro,

for all the reasons you cited, and also because I speak (and read) Italian but not French. Reading the stories in La Gazzetta every day is more fun than just looking at the pictures in L’Equipe.

Everyone should experience the Tour at least once — it’s definitely the Big Show, and I’ve had a lot of fun there — but since CycleGirl has already been to the Tour, I’d highly recommend a trip to the Giro one of these years.

It’s less of an international crowd at the Giro than at the Tour, making it more difficult to find other English-speakers to hang out with at the stages, but since I’m always looking for an excuse to practice my Italian, I love it that almost everyone I meet at the Giro is from Italy. Of course, if it really comes to pass that Armstrong rides the Giro and not the Tour next year, there may be a lot more Americans at the 2009 Giro than I’m used to seeing.

by Tifosa on Oct 29, 2008 3:52 PM EDT up 0 recs

I've been to the Giro but not the Tour so can't offer any comparisons

but I had a blast at the Giro – I was there for the last week. It was quite easy to drive around and see the stages and get near the riders. My Italian is pretty much non-existant (well I can read it and was reading la Gazzetta every day) but I had no problems with communicating with folks. I think I was a bit of an oddity – a woman that knew cycling but it was great.

And then to top if off I went to Cinque Terra which had been on my (very long) list of places to go.

Okay I want to go back now.

by lyne on Oct 31, 2008 9:16 PM EDT up 0 recs