Zomegnan presents an all-inclusive 2010 Giro d'Italia - CyclingNews
2010 Giro unveiled - VeloNews


I think Carlos Sastre will like this route a lot, it's only 36,6 km ITT. But the TTT is 32,5 km, so in total it's 69,1 km with TT.
But I got a feeling that Sastre want to finish his career with a final Vuelta a España so maybe no Giro next year..


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Giro d’Italia 2010
Today, the official presentation of the Giro d’Italia 2010 took place in Milano under the lead of Giro director Angelo Zomegnan.The first Grand Tour in 2010, the Giro d’Italia will kick off on May 8^th in Amsterdam (NLD) and includes all team and mountain time trial, gravel roads, legendary passes until the end on 30th of May in Verona, Italy.

The 2010 Giro will consist of six mountain stages – taking in the climbs of the Terminillo, Zoncolan, Plan de Corones, Pejo Terme, Mortirolo and Gavia – and seven sprinters' stage. There will be at the beginning and at the end an individual time trial. It also includes a team time trial in Cuneo and a mountain time trial (Plan de Corones).

“We start the Giro like the Tour de France in the Netherland. Three stages will take place there. The stages could be challenging and for sure, the competitors have to take care. After that, a Team Time Trial will take place in Savigliano, in the province Cuneo in the north-west part of Italy before the sprinters are on the row. On stage seven and stage eight will be then give the first big split. The last week which will take place in the Alps and in the Dolomites is really tough and I guess here the overall victory will be decided here. There are some stage with a total climb of over 4000 meter and some challenging passes are included like the Passo Gavia . For sure, the weather could play there a decisive role and definitivly the winner needs some good climbers skills,” summarized
Marcello Albasini, Sports Director of the Cervélo TestTeam.

If I was the CTT director I'd send a team to support Carlos for the GC at the Giro. CTT's only Achilles heel is the TTT, but I don't think RadioShack, Saxo, or Columbia (the 3 favorites, I would say) will be sending their top teams, and CTT should be good for top 5. Carlos came in fourth last year, or third depending how you look at it, and he wasn't even at his best. Basso should be the favorite.

I don't think Sastre or Hushovd wants to ride the Giro.. Therefore I would like to give Heinrich Haussler the chance as the main guy for CTT! I think CTT should have the sprints and breakaways as the main target..
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Bartoli previews Giro d'Italia's gravel roads

Pellizotti ready to share Giro leadership with Basso
"For our team the Giro is very important, and all eyes will be on us without all the big names that we had this year," said Pellizotti.

"It is better to go to the Giro with two captains because you never know what will happen. One of us could crash or have a flat on those tough days in The Netherlands or the gravel stage in Siena."

I suspect the Giro will be somewhat watered-down this year. RadioShack, Columbia and Garmin will likely not send any top riders as they will be more inclined to use the Tour of California as a warm-up for the TDF. I'm not sure what Sastre will do - he will probably be choosing between the Giro and the Vuelta. My guess is that he will do the Vuelta, but will wait until Dec 16 when the Vuelta route becomes official.

Carlos Sastre will race the Giro d’Italia!
Carlos Sastre Candil has taken the first step in planning his 2010 season. “After analyzing the routes of the three Grand Tours and discussing them with the Cervélo TestTeam sports directors, I’ve decided to participate in the Giro d’Italia,” said the winner of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre came third in the Italian race last year and had victories in the two high mountain stages finishing on Monte Petrano and Vesuvius.

“Last year I had a great time at the Giro and I want to go back. The fact that I haven’t won this race gives me special motivation, and the route is very attractive for a rider with my characteristics. It is a really important opportunity,” said the Spanish rider, who did not want to divulge any more about his 2010 season.

“For the moment, I’ve only planned up to the Giro. I’ve got time to decide on the rest of my calendar and I want to do it according to how I feel. There’s no pressure about what to choose, and the next race I ride in will be because I feel ready to take on this new opportunity,” said Sastre.



I did not predict this! :-)
I'm very surprised!

THY:

I don't think Sastre or Hushovd wants to ride the Giro.. Therefore I would like to give Heinrich Haussler the chance as the main guy for CTT! I think CTT should have the sprints and breakaways as the main target..

Giro d'Italia to start in the USA, announcement tomorrow
The Giro d'Italia will announce tomorrow its plans to start the 2012 edition in the USA, becoming the first Grand Tour to start outside of Europe, according to Italy's Il Sole 24 Ore.

The newspaper reported today that Washington, DC, Mayor Adrian Fentry will join Giro d'Italia Race Director Angelo Zomegnan at the Italian Embassy to make public their search for American sponsors. 

"For some time we have had the idea of holding the Giro's start in America," said Zomegnan during a trip to the USA in November. "But now there exists a concrete interest from the city of Washington."



VeloNation

THY:

I don't think Sastre or Hushovd wants to ride the Giro.. Therefore I would like to give Heinrich Haussler the chance as the main guy for CTT! I think CTT should have the sprints and breakaways as the main target..
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Bartoli previews Giro d'Italia's gravel roads

 

I don't see Haussler as a GC contender. A good rider with many Classics and stage wins in his future, but I don't personally think he has the makeup (yet?) to grind it out  to the GC podium in a GT. If Philip Deignan  can continue where he left off last season, I'd say he is the one to watch on CTT.  

No, no, you got it wrong..
Since I thought that Carlos Sastre most likely wouldn't take part in the Giro, I thought that we (CTT) should rather concentrate on the sprints and stage victories with Heinrich and breakaways for the team.

I meant we should go for the points jersey Maglia Rosso Passione instead of GC and Maglia rosa.

THY:

No, no, you got it wrong..
Since I thought that Carlos Sastre most likely wouldn't take part in the Giro, I thought that we (CTT) should rather concentrate on the sprints and stage victories with Heinrich and breakaways for the team.

I meant we should go for the points jersey Maglia Rosso Passione instead of GC and Maglia rosa.

 

Sounds reasonable, but I don't know if Haussler will have enough support to do this. Thor didn't have the support when he won the Green Jersey at the TDF last year, but Thor, is ... well, Thor. Haussler is not the dominating force that Hushovd is, but as has demonstrated flashes of it (eg Milan San Remo in 2009). 

RadioShack not invited to 2010 Giro d'Italia
The organizers of the Giro d'Italia RCS Sport will announce the teams invited to ride this year's race on Monday, but Lance Armstrong's RadioShack squad will not be amongst them. There also seems little chance that Riccardo Riccò will be welcomed back to this year's Giro, despite his ban for doping ending on March 18.

In recent weeks, RadioShack team manager Johan Bruyneel had publicly hoped the RadioShack team would be invited to the Giro. However with Armstrong and Levi Leipheimer targeting the Tour of California at the same time as the Giro, the US-registered team failed to convince the Giro organisers they deserved a place and did not push particularly hard to have a team in the race.

"On Monday, we're going to announce 22 teams, but RadioShack won't be in the race," race director Angelo Zomegnan told Cyclingnews when asked about the teams expected to line up in Amsterdam for the start of the Giro on May 8.

yaaarrrg

i can't wait for the giro this year!

is there any indication yet whether or not tondo will be coming to support sastre?

Some indications, "I am looking forward to the Giro, in helping Carlos and I am only thinking of this, ...". 

doh!

thanks for pointing that out :)

22 teams named for Italian Grand Tour
Giro d'Italia organisers RCS Sport announced today the names of 22 teams which will participate in this year's opening Grand Tour. 15 ProTour teams and seven wild cards from the Professional Continental ranks will contest the three-week race which begins in Amsterdam on May 8.

The BMC team of World Champion Cadel Evans earned a spot, as Evans has been open about wanting to race the Giro to win it. Also in from the Professional Continental ranks is the Cervelo team of Carlos Sastre, the French teams Bbox Bouygues Telecom and Cofidis, as well as Italian teams Acqua & Sapone, Androni Giocattoli and Colnago-CSF Inox.





Shack says Cali’ trumps Giro
Team RadioShack won't be going to the Giro d'Italia this year - but that was the team's choice rather than a snub by organizers RCS Sport, says Johan Bruyneel.

Writing on his blog, Bruyneel confirmed that RadioShack would not be racing the Giro, adding, "but the truth is that we communicated this to the Giro organizers, RCS. I like the Giro, I think it's a great race, but to be quite honest, we are putting all our focus on the Amgen Tour of California."

Bruyneel said the weeklong American stage race holds more value to its sponsors and thus is key to his U.S.-registered team.

.....

"If anything, I think this showed respect to RCS and the Giro in that they could put in a team that had specific race objectives," Bruyneel said. "But RCS did not like this news and instead decided that Team RadioShack would not be invited to Tirreno-Adriatico. Hopefully we will not be ‘punished' for future RCS races. They have a great organization and we enjoy participating in many of the races they put on."



Note: Team RadioShack is a ProTour Team!