“Giro d’Italia 2023: Decisive Climbing Time Trial to Monte Lussari and Controversial Rules”

Saturday, May 27, 2023 at 09:41

Today the Giro d’Italia will fall in a decisive fold in a special climbing time trial to Monte Lussari. This is a climb of 7.3 kilometers at an average (!) 12.1%, with a stretch of up to 22% in the ultimate finale. Patrick Lefevere, Soudal Quick-Step’s team manager, is not a fan of this particular climb time trial to say the least.

Lefevere takes in his regular column for Het Nieuwsblad no leaf in the mouth. “A time trial decides on the Giro today, although you can also call it a circus. I’m not going to weigh my words: how the course is now drawn, I am three hundred percent against. I don’t understand the fascination with those extreme percentages of increase. This Giro has provided proof: the steeper the mountain, the more often it gives birth to a mouse.”

The team boss also looks at the CPA riders’ union and the drivers themselves. “In the Giro stage to Crans Montana, the peloton wanted a shortening of the stage and they got it. But then I don’t understand why they let today’s time trial pass. Ilan Van Wilder drives the time trial with a 36×34 gear. That’s mountain biking, not road racing. I think we should monitor the boundaries of the various disciplines more strictly.”

According to Lefevere, the climbing time trial to Monte Lussari is no longer of this time. “And then in the final ten decisive kilometers there is a mechanic on a motorcycle behind, with a bicycle over his shoulder. Are those the professional standards you want to propagate as a cycling sport? I think it’s a farce”, he is very clear.

Special rules
A few days before the start of the Giro d’Italia, there was consternation about the climbing time trial. There were logistical problems because support vehicles cannot follow the riders on the narrow roads. That is why engines are made available, only it was feared that there was not enough space for all engines at the top of the climb.

However, the sky soon cleared. “On the climb, each rider will be followed by a mechanic who sits on the back of the bike with a spare bike on the back. Not easy in practice, but it has happened in the past,” said sports director Geert Van Bondt Soudal Quick Step. In the meantime, some adjustments have also been made.