The 2020 Giro d’Italia will begin in Sicily in October after organisers announced on Friday a revised start for the coronavirus-delayed Grand Tour.
The opening stage of the 103rd edition will be a 16-kilometre individual time-trial around Palermo on October 3, some five months after the race had been due to start in the Hungarian capital Budapest.
The Giro’s second stage will be a 150km run between Alcamo and Agrigento the following day. The first major climb comes in the third stage on October 5 when riders will take on Mount Etna, arriving at an altitude of 1,775 metres on the Piano Provenzana.
A sprint finish at Villafranca Tirrena following a 138km ride from Catania in the fourth stage will finish the Giro’s spell on the island on October 6.
It will be the first time since 2008 that the Giro launches its ‘Grande Partenza’ in Sicily, and the ninth time in the race’s history.
In Italy the Giro was branded the biggest loser when cycling’s revised calendar was announced in May because the three-week race, which will feature 21 stages, has a six-day overlap with the Vuelta a Espana and will be raced at the same time as three ‘Monument’ classics.
The opening four stages of the 2020 Giro d’Italia:
October 3: 1st stage, Monreale - Palermo, 16km (individual time trial)
October 4: 2nd stage Alcamo - Agrigento, 150km
October 5: 3rd stage Enna - Etna (Piano Provenzana), 150km
October 6: 4th stage Catania - Villafranca Tirrena, 138km