Giro d'Italia - Stage 16

Published: 7 May 2024

Stage 16: Livigno – Santa Cristina Valgardena (202km)

If any of the riders were feeling relaxed after their second and final rest day, that won’t last long. The final week of the corsa rosa starts with a bang: the ascent of the fearsome Stelvio. Stage 16 is long, 202km from Livigno to Santa Cristina Valgardena, with the Stelvio intriguingly positioned as the first climb of the day.

Two short uncategorised climbs and a descent out of Livigno are all the preparation the riders get for the 19.6km climb up the Stelvio, the race’s Cima Coppi or highest point, which tops out at 2,758 metres. The climb averages 7.5% but reaches 15% at its maximum – and after that, it’s 113km of descending and riding on the flat until the next climb, making this stage a real tactical puzzle. While it’s possible that teams could send satellite riders into the breakaway to support their climbers later on in the race, they’ll have to weather a couple of hours of breakaway riding, while remaining far enough ahead of the peloton, to be at all useful on the final climbs.

With just over 40km left to ride the road pitches back up again, as the peloton will tackle two stern categorised climbs that will decide the order of the day and possibly blow apart the general classification race. First is the long but inconsistent Passo Pinei (23.4km, 4.7%) starting with 36km to go, which again reaches a max of 15%. Then there’s a short 5km descent before the climb to the summit finish at the Santa Cristina Valgardena (7.6km, 6.1%).

The last 3km are almost entirely uphill, averaging 12% but with pitches as steep as 16% in the opening section, which throws in some narrow hairpins for added difficulty. All three of the day’s climbs reach double-digit gradients, so it’s a long and brutal day in the saddle – and is likely to have a huge impact on the GC.

Major Races

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Date	Event	Class
29 Jun - 21 Jul	Tour de France	2.UWT
12 Aug - 18 Aug	Tour de France Femmes	2.WWT
4 May - 26 May	Giro d'Italia	2.UWT
28 Apr - 5 May	Vuelta España Femenina	2.WWT

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