Stage 1 (TTT): San Lorenzo Mare › Sanremo – 17.6km
The 98th Giro d’Italia gets underway with a 17.6-kilometer team time trial. It’s a short, flat affair from Point A to Point B, but there are some tight corners along the way. Huge gaps are unlikely but the good TTT squads should be able to pick up a bit of time on the weaker teams here.
Most of the powerhouse names in time trialing are skipping the Giro this year, but the always strong Orica-GreenEdge TTT squad was never built off of one big name anyway. They get it done with consistent strength from top to bottom, good teamwork, and grade-A preparation. With most of the same riders that very nearly won the Tour de Romandie TTT, they will be the favorites to take Stage 1.
Team Sky beat them in Romandie but that team consisted of different riders; the black and blue squad will still have plenty of chrono firepower here, but will it be enough without Froome, Thomas, and Rowe? Motivated as they’ll be to put Porte into a good position for this race, expect a strong ride.
The GC aspirations of Joaquim Rodríguez have often been put at a serious disadvantage by Katusha’s poor team time trialing performances, but the Russian squad has found new life in this discipline thanks to chrono talents like Anton Vorobyev. They’ll be in the mix here. Etixx-QuickStep, on the other hand, has a reputation for TTT dominance, but the majority of their specialists aren’t making the trip to Italy.
Tinkoff-Saxo isn’t bringing too many big TT stars either, but a strong ride in support of Alberto Contador should be in the cards given the amount of general talent on the roster.
VeloHuman Stage 1 Favorites
1. Orica-GreenEdge | 2. Team Sky | 3. Katusha
Be sure to check back after the conclusion of Stage 1 for the preview of the next stage…
-Dane Cash
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