Gallery: The 2023 Giro d'Italia through the lens of cycling's best photographers

The big scheduled set pieces in the 2023 Giro d'Italia were stage 19 and stage 20 in the far northeast of Italy. After a slow build-up to the race with the GC still tight into the third week, the table was set for the summit finish on Tre Cime and the uphill time trial at Monte Lussari, before the ceremonial day in Rome.

On motorbikes, cars and the mountain sides alongside the route were the small army of photographers who are responsible for the scores of images that define cycling's iconography. Four of them – Ashley and Jered Gruber, Zac Williams and Luca Bettini – were also followed around by a GCN film crew to document the way they took on the challenge of documenting the moving tapestry that is the Giro peloton.

In celebration of the new documentary, Behind the Lens, out now on GCN+, we put together a gallery of the wonderful imagery Zac, Luca, Ashley and Jered captured on that weekend.

Stage 19 – Tre Cime di Lavaredo

No mountains are quite like the Dolomites, and nowhere in the Dolomites is quite as striking as the Tre Cime - or Three Peaks - di Lavaredo.

For the final summit finish of the Giro, the Cime were the postcard background for the showdown between Primož Roglič, Geraint Thomas and João Almeida, and the two Grubers didn't miss.

Nonetheless, the Grubers always take a bit of a wide look around the race – the mise-en-scène of the spectacle – and convey the whole travelling circus through their unique lenses. Their photos, especially in their adopted home of the Dolomites, are unique in their ability to express that.

© Ashley and Jered Gruber

Tre Cime just has a way of grabbing attention. It is the mountain with the three peaks in the rear

© Ashley and Jered Gruber

Toms Skujiņš on the final climb, soaking up all the passion

© Ashley and Jered Gruber

Sometimes a couple feet of scrambling can make all the difference. A hairpin from above on Tre Cime

© Ashley and Jered Gruber

A staple of the Grubers' photography is the use of dramatic light and moments of high contrast

© Ashley and Jered Gruber

In the Italian mountains, going wide can find the drama of the landscapes, but getting close captures the intensity of the tifosi. Both are wins in different ways

© Ashley and Jered Gruber

Derek Gee was everywhere in the 2023 Giro d'Italia, including the cross-hairs of the photographers on the race

Stage 20 – Monte Lussari

No one really knew what to expect with the final time trial of the Giro, on the steepest slopes of the race, with the final jersey up in the air between Primož Roglič and Geraint Thomas. In brilliant sunshine, with a countless number of Slovenian supporters who popped across right across the border with their country that was one hill away, the race was set for its grand finale.

Zac Williams, who is fantastic at rendering the drama and expressiveness of professional cycling, was able to find the passion and the pain of the day. Through these photos, which do a brilliant job of capturing the verticality of the climb and the drama of the mountains in the background, the colour of the day is intoxicating.

© Zac Williams

Tongue out and flat out was how Williams found Sepp Kuss on the steep slopes of the Giro's final mountain

© Zac Williams

When the going is slow, the photo making is good

© Zac Williams

Vertical shots can, at times, be a challenge. When the gradients are over 20%, however, it is not nearly as difficult

© Zac Williams

With helicopter shots and cameramen on motos, the steepness of climbs is often not conveyed in the most accurate way. Still photography, on the other hand, does not lie

© Zac Williams

Capturing the personalities of the mechanics, some of the most fun-loving folks in all of cycling

© Zac Williams

More verticality, more wonder, more Giro. Few races can compete with the scenery, which is one of the biggest draws of the race

© Zac Williams

For the day on Monte Lussari, the Giro d'Italia seemed to become the Giro of Slovenia

Stage 21 – Roma

While the final day transfer to Rome to have a ceremonial finish might not make the most sense, beyond finances, the format facilitates a different look and feel for the race as it waves goodbye for 332 or so days.

With the race almost wrapped up, the Rome day is about the architecture and the celebration. Luca Bettini was in all the right spots to capture the magic, while the Gruber's, once again, were able to find the moment and angles other did not touch.

© Sprint Cycling Agency

With the final sprint stage tradition, the background is almost more important than the racing

© Ashley and Jered Gruber

Rome's most famous monument, the Colosseum, was a neat aspect of the circuit around the capital

© Sprint Cycling Agency

The racing did, however, provide a great capstone to the Giro, with Mark Cavendish taking a huge sprint victory

© Ashley and Jered Gruber

Once the stage finished, it was time for Primož Roglič to take centre stage with his son taking his opportunity to be a main character in the celebrations

© Sprint Cycling Agency

He knows, like his dad, how to play to the crowd

© Sprint Cycling Agency

While the Vuelta has, typically, been the happiest of hunting grounds for Roglič, the 2023 Giro was a huge addition to his palmarès

© Sprint Cycling Agency

Roglič really savoured the victory in Rome and the troop of photographers obliged him

© Ashley and Jered Gruber

In a classic Gruber flourish, they didn't miss a chance to point their lenses where other photographer wouldn't

Behind the Lens is out now on GCN+. Watch on-demand and explore our extensive collection of exclusive and original cycling films.