Giro dell’Emilia, Pogacar-Alaphilippe challenge in Bologna San Luca

The big day of the Giro dell’Emilia has arrived, Adriano Amici’s classic Bolognese race of Gs Emilia, now in its 105th edition: it was born in 1909, like the Giro d’Italia. Saturday appointment at the Sanctuary of San Luca, on the hill overlooking Bologna: four laps (and five passages) and the last two very hard kilometers uphill with peaks of 20% at the Curve delle Orfanelle, about 1000 meters from the finish. The longest and most beautiful covered porch in the world was awarded the extraordinary recognition as a World Heritage Site by Unesco last year.

Men The men’s race starts from Carpi at 11.10: 198 km and 2,900 meters in altitude. 173 starters from 25 teams at the start. There are the winner of two editions of the Tour, the Slovenian Tadej Pogacar, the Spanish Alejandro Valverde, the Colombian Rigoberto Uran, the Dane Jakob Fulgsang, the British Simon Yates and Tao Geoghegan Hart, winner of the 2020 Giro d’Italia. to the French Julian Alaphilippe, to the new world champion of the time trial Tobias Foss, to the tricolor Filippo Zana, to Giulio Ciccone to Lorenzo Fortunato. There is also Canadian Michael Woods, twice on the podium in the last three editions. Five have already won the Giro dell’Emilia: the Russian Alexander Vlasov, first in 2020, Alessandro De Marchi (2018), Jhoan Esteban Chaves (2016), Jan Bakelants (2015) and Diego Ulissi (2013). In 2021 success of Primoz Roglic, with 3 “on Almeida and 5” on Woods; best Italian Diego Ulissi, 8th at 1’46 ”.

Donne The women’s race (123 at the start, 22 teams) will start from Carpi at 11.55 and will arrive in Bologna San Luca after 89 km. At the start the former world champion Elisa Balsamo, the world champion of the Under 23 chronometer Vittoria Guazzini, as well as Elisa Longo Borghini who triumphed over San Luca twice (2015 and 2016), the Lithuanian Rasa Leleivyte, first in 2018, and to the Italian Marta Cavalli, winner this year of the Amstel Gold Race and of the Freccia Vallone, who thus returns to racing after the terrible accident at the Tour de France … And then the blue Zanardi and Bertizzolo, the Australian Spratt and the Slovenian Zygart (Pogacar’s girlfriend).