It wasn’t until February 24th, barely 13 weeks to the start of the first stage, that RCS finally unveiled the course of the Giro 2021.
Why the delay? Has there been a reluctance on the side of some Italian municipalities to commit themselves to an event for which one can legitimately wonder if mass attendance will be encouraged?
The 2020 edition famously experienced its share of setbacks and polemics, between the withdrawal of two teams due to positive coronavirus cases, an Education First squad that asked that the race be put to an end as early as the second week of competition, and cyclists who went so far as to raise the threat of a strike so that the 19th stage be shortened of about 100 km.
Here’s hoping things will go more smoothly this year. In that respect, the organizers have refocused on their fundamentals: in addition to the classic climb of the Zoncolan (one of the toughest in Europe), our riders will have to face a triple ascent totalizing a positive elevation of about 5700 m (!) in the Dolomites and 35 km of unpaved roads on the Strade Bianche in Tuscany.
On a historical note, this 2021 Giro will pay tribute to Dante Alighieri. For the 700th anniversary of the poet’s death, the race will stop in Ravenna where he is buried, as well as in Faligno where his Divine Comedy was printed for the first time.
This will no doubt act as a reminder that in the Divine Comedy, Purgatory is described as a gigantic mountain… Beyond which Paradise opens up.
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