Rain, falls galore, nasty viruses, Thibaut Pinot clashing with Jonathan Vaughters on Twitter with the blessing of Lance Armstrong, a Frenchman in pink for the first time in the 21st century and now a succession of dantesque passes to finish off the survivors… The third and final week of this Giro de dingoes starts this Tuesday, and we already have put down the RTTs so as not to miss anything of the show. To get off to a good start, we take a look at the challenges of the remaining six stages.
How many survivors in Rome?
The first two thirds of this Tour of Italy were nothing but an endless massacre. The Covid, the small viruses due to the weather conditions as execrable as they are changing and the many bowls have operated a drastic sorting. Forty-four runners out of the 176 at the start have already given up, and no one can believe they are safe by next Sunday as the race is going in all directions. “In this Giro, it’s about surviving, summed up Primoz Roglic last week. As Rocky said: the question is not how hard you can hit, but how much you are able to take it and still go forward. »
When the Slovenian, not really reputed to be the funniest in the peloton, comes out with something like that, it’s because we’ve reached a stage in the big nonsense. This 106th Giro will also remain as the one where the riders threatened to strike if a stage was not shortened. It was Friday, during the first big meeting in the high mountains, finally concentrated on 74 km instead of 199. “A good decision if we want to reach Rome with at least 50 runners”, reacted Geraint Thomas from the height of his 36 years. The Brit isn’t the only veteran wondering what he’s still doing on a bike. Maxime Bouet (36), Ignatas Konovalovas (37) and Luis Léon Sanchez (39), who have seen others, admitted to living the most painful Grand Tour of their careers. “From very far”, even, according to the Frenchman from Arkéa-Samsic.
A priori, the weather looks more lenient for this last week. Finally, as far as possible at more than 2,000 meters above sea level.
The steps not to be missed
We are not far from saying all of them, in fact. This Tuesday already, it starts very strong with five passes on the menu, for more than 5,000 meters of elevation. The runners will warm up on the difficult Passo di Santa Barbara (12 km at 8% average), before doing the roller coaster all day until the formidable and legendary final climb to Monte Bondone. Twenty terminals of suffering with passages at 15%, yum. It won’t be bad either on Thursday with four slightly less complicated climbs, which could be perfect for a long-distance breakaway.
But you only have to choose one stage, we recommend the 19th, Friday, between Longarone and the Tre Cime. A little over 180 km of happiness (on his couch) through the Dolomites, with five ascents that follow one another without respite. Special mention for the explosive Passo Giau (9.9 km at 9.3%), ideally placed 40 terminals from the finish to launch the major maneuvers. If that’s not enough, the finale to the Trois Cimes de Lavaredo, with its 18% portions, has a hell of a face on earth.
Catch-up session on Saturday with a capital stopwatch. The runners will arrive launched by 11 km of flat on a real wall, the Monte Lussari. In detail, for the purists: first 5 km at 15% on average, with a peak at more than 20%, a small flat area, a ramp in the last kilometer with slopes up to 22%, a slight descent and the last 150 meters at 16% so it’s already burning everywhere. Better to reserve your stretcher upstairs, there won’t be enough for everyone.
Bruno Armirail in pink for a long time yet?
The first French pink jersey since Jaja in 1999 does not plan on the comet. The usual team member within Groupama-FDJ is benefiting from a little light, without forgetting why he is there: to help his leader Thibaut Pinot. “It’s not a pressure, just a bonus,” he said on Monday during the rest day. If I can keep the shirt tomorrow night [mardi], it would be great. My role is to keep it as long as possible, and once I lose it, that will be it for Thibaut. »
His teammate is currently 11th overall at 4’23, and just 3 minutes from the podium. Second in the famous 13th stage on Friday, he is still brooding a little according to Armirail but he is not doing “too badly”, which is already good news given the conditions of the first two weeks. For his last dance on this Tour of Italy that he loves so much, Pinot is chasing the stage victory and the general classification. No order of preference, I promise. “We can play both, win a stage and take advantage of it to get closer to the overall standings, assures Amirail with a smile. It will really be the two objectives, we will see how, either by a breakaway or on the pedal. In any case, these few days tinged with rose have inflated the morale of the troops. “This jersey transcends the team, observes its wearer. It’s still nice to have it. »
Who is best placed for the final victory (apart from Tibopino, of course)?
The battle between favorites has been more of a race by elimination, for the moment, with the defections of Remco Evenepoel due to a positive Covid test and Tao Geoghegan Hart following a fall. For the rest, nothing to get your teeth into, apart from the acceleration of Joao Almeida and Primoz Roglic on Sunday on the road to Bergamo. Let’s stay positive, it can only get carried away this week, especially given the route. “I too am a little disappointed by the scenario, admitted Geraint Thomas on Monday. It’s a waiting race at the moment, but it’s going to blow up eventually and hopefully I’ll be on the safe side. »
The Briton, winner of the 2018 Tour de France, has a very slight advantage for the moment, second overall with two seconds ahead of the Slovenian and 22 over the Portuguese. “They are the closest, but everyone in the top 10 is a threat, especially on this Giro and with this very difficult last week,” he commented. It is true that a disappointment happened quickly, the Tour of Italy reminds us of this every year. Last year, Richard Carapaz had exploded in flight during the 20th stage, pink jersey on the back. For our part, we put a small coin on Primoz Roglic, intrinsically the strongest and who still has a full team at his side to help him keep his strength in the high mountains. Not a small privilege.