GIRO’16: Good Morning Alpago!

The Queen Stage in the Dolomites awaits

Alpago (Farra), 21 May 2016 – Good morning from Stage 14 of the Giro d’Italia, 210km from Alpago (Farra) to Corvara (Alta Badia). This Queen Stage of the 99th Giro will cross no less than six Dolomites passes before the finish in Corvara, Alta Badia, in the middle of the UNESCO world heritage landscape.

The group, 174 riders strong, passed km 0 at 11.09.

WEATHER
Alpago (Farra): Sunny, 20°C. Wind: weak – 5kmh.
Corvara (Alta Badia – approx. 17.10 – Finish): Sunny, 20°C. Wind: moderate – 18kmh.

JERSEYS
Maglia Rosa (pink), General Classification, sponsored by Enel – Andrey Amador (Movistar Team)
Maglia Rossa (red), Sprint Classification, sponsored by Algida – Giacomo Nizzolo (Trek – Segafredo)
Maglia Azzurra (blue), Mountains Classification, sponsored by Banca Mediolanum – Damiano Cunego (Nippo – Vini Fantini)
Maglia Bianca (white), Young Rider Classification, sponsored by Eurospin – Bob Jungels (Etixx – Quick-Step)

POINTS AND TIME BONUSES
During the stage, 122 King of the Mountains points are up for grabs, the maximum amount in a single stage of this year’s Giro, as well as time bonuses of 13 seconds. A maximum possible 31 points are available for the points classification.

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1 – Andrey Amador (Movistar Team)
2 – Bob Jungels (Etixx – Quick-Step) at 26″
3 – Vincenzo Nibali (Astana Pro Team) at 41″
4 – Alejandro Valverde (Movistar Team) at 43″
5 – Steven Kruijswijk (Team Lotto NL – Jumbo) s.t.

Stage 14 – Alpago (Farra) – Corvara (Alta Badia) – 210km
Finish: Approx. 17.15
Race Headquarters: Tennis Corvara, Strada Burjé, 5

Route
Over the last 150km of this Queen Stage across the Dolomites, there are six passes to be climbed, for a total rise and drop of 4,700m (out of 5,400m). The route runs across the Val Cordevole along well-surfaced roads, all the way to Arabba. Here, the route clears Passo Pordoi, followed by Passo Sella and Passo Gardena (with not even a single flat metre in between), and heads for the first pass over the finish line in Corvara (intermediate sprint).

The road then climbs up Passo Campolongo, Passo Giau (the harshest climb of the stage, with an average 9% gradient, and peaks of more than 10-12% over the first kilometres) and Passo Valparola, which leads to the final 5km. All climbs and descents feature many hairpins and a few narrow urban crossings.

Final kms
The last 5km run mostly uphill. The route clears Muro del Gatto (360m, with gradients ranging from 13 to 19%), and then drops down into the trunk road leading to Corvara, still climbing slightly (average slope: 2-3%). The last bend is 150m from the finish line and the home stretch, on a 6m wide asphalt road, has a mild uphill gradient.

POINTS OF INTEREST
FARRA D’ALPAGO – km 0
The stage starts from Farra d’Alpago, on the north-eastern shore of the Lake of Santa Croce. The area is home to many sports, in the woods and the mountains; while Poiatte, on the lake shore, is ideal for sailing and windsurfing. The area of Alpago, in the Prealps around Belluno, at the foot of the Cansiglio plateau has already been featured in the route of the Corsa Rosa.

PONTE NELLE ALPI – km 8 and BELLUNO – km 15
The route first cuts across Ponte nelle Alpi, a picturesque town on the River Piave. Next is Belluno, the provincial capital, rising on a rocky spur within the valley. The influence of Venetian architecture is reflected on the buildings in the old town centre, such as the cathedral, Palazzo dei Rettori and the clock tower.

AGORDO – km 43
The route runs past Mas (a hamlet in Sedico) and enters the “Parco Nazionale delle Dolomiti Bellunesi” national park in Agordo, a peaceful holiday resort. The town was previously major iron mining centre, and is currently the seat of a Mining Institute of secondary education.

ALLEGHE – km 62
The route starts to climb in Cencenighe Agordino, in a landscape dominated by Mount Civetta (3,220 m). Alleghe, next on the course, is a charming holiday resort and an excellent venue for summer and winter sports. The extraordinary vertical face of Mount Civetta must be seen!

ARABBA (intermediate sprint) – km 85
This and other stretches of the stage run on the ss. 48 (the so-called Große Dolomitenstraße), the road that connects Bolzano to Dobbiaco, as proposed by Theodor Christomannos (1854-1911), a pioneer in Alpine tourism who is considered the “inventor” of the Costalunga, Pordoi and Falzarego climbs.

PASSO PORDOI (KOM) – km 95
First-category and first KOM of the stage, located between the Sella Group to the north and the Marmolada to the south, Passo Pordoi is not new to the Corsa Rosa, as demonstrated by the memorial to the “Campionissimo” Fausto Coppi.

PASSO SELLA (KOM) – km 107
The route winds its way in a wonderful landscape, entering the province of Trento to tackle the Passo Sella 2nd category climb. Running clockwise around the Sella massif, we can catch sight of the Langkofel.

PLAN DE GRALBA (feed zone) – km 112 and PASSO GARDENA (KOM) – km 118

CORVARA (intermediate sprint) – km 127
The route cuts across Colfosco and plunges down into Corvara (intermediate sprint) in the heart of Val Badia. The imposing silhouette of Mount Sassongher stands out on the left. The mountain is regarded as the symbol of Corvara, protecting the town.

PASSO CAMPOLONGO (KOM) – km 133
The route rises abruptly, amidst the famous Dolomites peaks, heading for Passo Campolongo (2nd category KOM).

ARABBA – km 137
The route takes another pass through Arabba, closing the first loop around the Sella massif that skiing and cycling enthusiasts call “Sella Ronda”.

PIEVE DI LIVINALLONGO – km 144
The scene of some of WWI’s most fierce events of, including battles for the Col di Lana summit.

COLLE SANTA LUCIA – km 157
The famous Belvedere provides a stunning view of mounts Pelmo and Civetta.

PASSO GIAU (KOM) – km 169
A spectacular, stunning landscape: the route winds its way among large meadows and lush forests, dominated by the Nuvolau and Averau mountaintops. Along the climb and on top of the pass, one glance can capture the Marmolada, the Sella Group, the Tofane, the Cristallo massif and all the wonderful natural sights of the Dolomites.

POCOL – km 179
This tiny hamlet in Cortina d’Ampezzo is home to a military memorial to the fallen of WWI. Cortina d’Ampezzo is nicknamed the “queen of the Dolomites” and is the largest and most famous of the 18 municipalities of Ladinia. A renowned winter and summer tourist resort, it hosted the Winter Olympics in 1956. Completely surrounded by the Ampezzo Dolomites, Cortina has a unique beauty. The most famous mountains include Tofane, Pomagagnon, Cristallo, Faloria, Sorapiss, Becco del Mezzodì, Croda da Lago and Nuvolau.

PASSO FALZAREGO – km 189
A “historically famous” mountain pass offering stunning views of the mountains around Cortina d’Ampezzo. The name Falzarego comes from Latin, “fàlza régo” (“false king”), a name that –legend has it – refers to the ruler of the Kingdom of Fanes, who stripped the rightful holder of his throne and was turned into stone for having deceived his people.

PASSO VALPAROLA (KOM) – km 191
The view over the Dolomites ranges from to Sassongher, through Gardenaccia and to the Peitlerkofel.

SAN CASSIANO – km 201
The town is a major tourist resort in the municipal district of Badia, a busy ski resort and tourism destination in both winter and summer.

LA VILLA/STERN – km 205
La Villa, next on the route at the end of the descent, is the birthplace of Maria Canins, a successful cross-country skier and road rider – she twice won the Tour de France (1985 and 1986), and finished second in the following three editions. Here, the route takes in a first-ever pass on “Muro del Gatto”, a short yet nasty climb).

CORVARA – km 210
The finish of this Queen Stage across the Dolomites is set in Corvara, in the same place as the Maratona dles Dolomites; the Granfondo is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.
Corvara lies in a large, splendid valley in the upper Val Badia, at the foot of the majestic Sella group. The pristine natural landscape is dotted with verdant meadows in gentle rolling hills. The imposing peaks of the Dolomites, such as Sassongher, surround and protect the valley.
The town hosts its sixth Giro d’Italia stage finish this year. In 1989, victory went to Flavio Giupponi (the finish was set in Colfosco); in 1992 to Franco Vona; in 1993, the city hosted two consecutive stage finishes, with victory going to Moreno Argentin and Claudio Chiappucci. Finally, in 2002, coming in first was Julio Perez Cuapio.

TV COVERAGE
TV coverage of the 99th Giro d’Italia will reach all four corners of the world: 184 countries will see the Corsa Rosa on 29 different networks, 24 of them live.

ITALY
RAI – Radio Televisione Italiana, the longstanding host broadcaster, provides extensive coverage of the Corsa Rosa. The action is live in three separate programmes: “Prima diretta” (“Pre-Live”) on Rai Sport 1, “Giro in diretta” (“Giro Live”) at 15:10 – 16:15 in simulcast on Rai 3 and Rai HD, and “Giro all’arrivo” (“Giro on the Finish Line”), with the last hour of racing until 17:15. The traditional post-race analysis programme “Processo alla Tappa” (“The Stage on Trial”) ends at 18:00.
When the race reaches Italy, the stage start will be covered in Rai Sport 1’s “Giro Mattina” (“Giro Morning”), showing the signing in ceremony, with interviews, the start of racing, and local colour. The strand “Journey through the Italy of the Giro d’Italia” will show historical and cultural anecdotes and features.
For viewers unable to watch the stage live in the afternoon, the evening show TGiro (“Giro Bulletin”) will tell the story of the day’s racing from 20:00 on Rai Sport 1, followed by Giro Notte (“Late Night Giro”), with 90’ of stage highlights from 22:45 on Rai Sport 2. The Corsa Rosa will be streamed on the website www.rai.tv.

AROUND THE WORLD
In Italy the Giro can also be seen live on Eurosport, broadcasting to 53 countries across Europe from 14:15, with race commentary in 19 languages.
In France, the stages are live exclusively on beINSports, with reports and features from the scene.
The Dutch public broadcaster NOS is showing three hours of live racing of the first three stages in the Netherlands, as well as the final 90 minutes of the weekend stages in Italy, plus daily highlights of every stage.
Free to air race coverage is live in Flemish via VRT, in Danish on TV2 Denmark, in Switzerland via SRG SSR, in Spain via Teledeporte and EITB and in Kazakhstan, in highlights, on Kaz Sports.
The Corsa Rosa is live in South America on ESPN, with Portuguese commentary in Brazil, English commentary in the Caribbean and Spanish across the rest of South America. Colombian fans have a wide range of options, with live coverage on RCN and Señal Colombia. TDN is showing the race live in Mexico and Central America. beIN Sports is covering the Giro in the United States of America and RDS is providing French-language coverage in Canada.
The Giro d’Italia is also on the small screen in the Middle East and North Africa thanks to live coverage on beIN Sports, while in South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa the Giro is on the Supersport channels.
In Asia, the Corsa Rosa in available in 16 countries via Eurosport Asia Pacific; J Sports is covering the race live and exclusive in Japan. LeTV is doing the same in China.
Race highlights are on FPT Telecom in Vietnam, while the Thai public can enjoy the key parts of the stage on both True Visions and NOW26.
The huge interest that Australia has shown in the Giro continues in 2016: SBS is showing all 21 stage live, while Fox Sports is showing highlights. In New Zealand, Sky is showing the race live and in highlights.
Finally, the Corsa Rosa is being shown worldwide via SNTV – Sports News Television and Sport24, the 24 hour sports channel for airline and cruise ship passengers.

GIRO D’ITALIA – RIDE GREEN
During yesterday’s stage, over 2.8 metric tons of rubbish were collected, 82% of which will be recycled. Almost 28 tons of rubbish has been recycled so far at the Giro.

#Giro

PHOTO CREDIT: ANSA – PERI / DI MEO / ZENNARO