Giro di Lombardia 2009/2010 Live Dashboard

Audio languages: EN | FR | DE | ES | IT
Ticker languages: EN | FR | DE | ES | IT

2009 Giro d'Lombardia Race Preview by Gavia

Also follow steephill on Twitter for the latest race info and video updates.

The Course

The Giro di Lombardia sets out from Varese over uneven terrain and after 25 kilometers of racing, the course climbs the San Fermo della Battaglia for the first time and passes through the finish at Como. After passing through Como, the course heads northeast. A 9 kilometer climb to Intelvi arrives at kilometer 46 before the course descends to Portezza. The Giro di Lombardia runs along the Swiss border not far from Lugano and passes along the eastern bank of the Lago di Lugano. After hopping over the brief bump of the Croce di Menaggio, the riders begin a 50 kilometer stretch of mostly flat racing and pass through Dongo, Sorico, and Dervio. At Sorico, the Giro di Lombardia reaches the tip of the clover leaf, and its furthest point from Como.

Heading southwest now, La Foglie Morte follows an uneven trace along Lake Como, passing through Dervio, Taceno, and Lecco. The terrain turns bumpy at kilometer 130, where there is a six kilometer climb to Portone before a short descent to Taceno. About seven kilometers of gradual climbing follow the town ofTaceno until the summit of the Colle di Balisio at kilometer 156. From there, it’s a 10 kilometer descent which passes through Lecco and comes to rest in Valmadreta. But this is all prologue.

After another 25 kilometers of flat racing, the real Giro begins, and the final 50 kilometers of the Giro di Lombardia constantly climb and descend. After passing through Onno, the favorites will begin moving toward the front in preparation for the climb to the Madonna del Ghisallo (). The road wraps around the hillside and climbs through 9 kilometers of switchbacks to the summit. There sits the iconic chapel which celebrates the sport of cycling. One of the favorites will surely take at dig on the road to the Ghisallo, but it’s still 45 kilometers to race to the finish, so this climb rarely decides the race.

From the summit of the Ghisallo, the road descends around 15 kilometers, before a series of stair-stepping climbs begins. Passing through Erba, Albese con Cassano and Solzago, the course gradually gains elevation until it reaches the base of the Civiglio. The Civiglio () is 4 kilometers in length and gains just under 200 meters in elevation. This often-decisive climb begins 20 kilometers from the finish and frequently the winning move will go up the road on the steep switch-backing slopes of the Civiglio. The descent is very fast, and drops 400 meters in 3 kilometers. As the Giro di Lombardia speeds toward its finale, there remains just one climb and 12 kilometers to race.

Four kilometers of false-flat descending follow the drop off the Civiglio, then it’s on to the San Fermo della Battaglia, a short 3 kilometer climb. The San Fermo with its tricky descent can provide the launch pad for a winning move. Wearing the Rainbow Jersey of World Champion, Paolo Bettini won the Giro di Lombardia solo with an attack on the San Fermo. The descent off the San Fermo rivals the Poggio in difficulty and includes a short section through a narrow alleyway. Only the confident bike handlers will enjoy the drop into Como. From the summit of the San Fermo della Battaglia, there remains six kilometers of racing. The final two kilometers are flat, and if a small group comes to the line together, the winner will need a bit of punch left in his legs to make the difference.

The Favorites

Damiano Cunego has won the Giro di Lombardia three times in his career and before he retires, it seems likely that the 28 year old Lampre-Ngc rider will equal the record held by Alfredo Binda. The course fits Cunego’s characteristics to perfection with its short climbs, tricky descents, and flat finish. The Italian hit brilliant form at the September Vuelta a España where he won two mountain stages. He entered the World Championship road race as a prime favorite, but managed only eighth in the end, a disappointing result after last year’s second in Varese. At the recent Italian races, Cunego finished 14th at Giro dell’Emilia, and 9th at Grand Premio Bruno Beghelli. Cunego’s form seems to have come and gone ahead of schedule, much as it did in the Spring when he flew through the Coppi e Bartali stage race, but subsequently came up winless in the Ardennes where he finished 5th at the Amstel Gold Race and 7th at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. It’s difficult to count Cunego out at Lombardia, because he has found so much success on the roads around Como in past seasons, but his current form looks less than stellar.

Philippe Gilbert, meanwhile, is on fire this Fall. The Belgian won the Coppa Sabatini in Italy. Then, Gilbert took his second straight win on the Avenue de Grammont at Paris-Tours by out-sprinting Tom Boonen and Borut Božič. Gilbert has had a remarkable run this season in the one day races, with a 3rd place at the Ronde van Vlaanderen, 4th at Amstel Gold Race, and 4th at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. The fourth at Liège-Bastogne-Liège came after Gilbert burned his legs with an early - and failed - attack in the run-in to the Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons. The Silence-Lotto rider has established himself as a multi-talented contender for just about any one day race on the calender. Gilbert has no previous results at the Giro di Lombardia, and while he has not thrived on the hilly courses in the past his performance in the Ardennes and at the Worlds race at Mendrisio where he finished sixth put paid to the notion that he can’t handle the climbs at a race like Lombardia. Dutch rider Jo de Roo was the most recent rider to win the Autumn Double of Paris-Tours and Giro di Lombardia. De Roo, who never finished a Tour de France, accomplished this rare feat two years in a row, 1962 and 1963. Both Cunego and Gilbert have the history books in sight in this Giro di Lombardia. Update: And just won another race, Giro del Piemonte, on Thursday.

Gilbert shares team leadership with the new World Champion Cadel Evans. Not known as a one-day rider, Evans surprised many observers - and his rivals - with his big attack on the Torrazza de Novazzano which won him his first Rainbow Jersey and his first major one day victory. Evans has achieved his best results in the grand tours and has not typically shown the attacking speed necessary to win the classics. A big attack on the Côte de Saint-Nicolas at Liège-Bastogne-Liège foreshadowed his winning move at Mendrisio, though it came to nothing. Evans has no previous results at the Giro di Lombardia, though he confirmed his solid form at the recent Giro dell’Emilia with a 4th place finish. Together Evans and Gilbert make a formidable team, and if they collaborate the way they did at Coppa Sabatini, they have an excellent chance of ascending the top step in Como. With his faster finish, Gilbert looks the better option for Silence-Lotto, but after his performance at Mendrisio, Evans ranks among the favorites.

Samuel Sànchez has finished on the podium at the Giro di Lombardia twice previously. More recently, Sànchez finished second at the Vuelta a España, a race he considered his main objective of the year, and just missed the podium in Mendrisio with a fourth place result at the World Championships. The sinuous descents of Lombardia suit his mad skills and he can climb with the best. The Euskaldi-Euskaltel rider won last summer’s hilly Olympic road race in Beijing and has won the now-defunct Züri Metzgete, which followed a hilly circuit before descending to a flat finish. How well has Sànchez held his form since the Vuelta and Worlds? We’ll see on Saturday, but certainly, he is a rider well-suited to the Italian monument.

Joaquìm Rodrìguez has steadily moved out of the shadow of his better-known team-mate Alejandro Valverde. Valverde takes a pass on this Giro di Lombardia, as he is banned from racing in Italy. Rodrìguez will lead Caisse d’Epargne in Valverde’s absence and with a 2nd place finish at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and a 3rd place finish in the Worlds road race at Mendrisio, Rodrìguez has built up a tidy collection of results in the one day races this season. Rodrìguez is best when the road turns up, and he will not enjoy the flat finish in Como. Alexandr Kolobnev out-sprinted the Spanish rider with relative ease at Mendrisio. Rodríguez could add to his podium collection, he would have to escape solo or with a slower sprinter to win. Tall order, that.

The Giro dell’Emilia finishes on a steep climb to a hilltop sanctuary and favors the climbers in much the way of La Flèche Wallone or the Amstel Gold Race. Robert Gesink celebrated victory at the most recent edition last weekend, and looks ready for a good ride at Lombardia. Gesink is not known for his descending, though he recently commented that his rough day on the downhill at Paris-Nice was something of an aberration. Certainly, he rode well enough on the tricky roads of the recent Vuelta a España. Though a knee injury derailed Gesink’s general classification campaign, the young Dutch climber has held his fitness and should thrive in the hills around Lombardia. Gesink finished 3rd at this year’s Amstel Gold Race, but the flat finish at Lombardia will do him no favors. He has an excellent shot at making the final selection, but a win in Como could prove elusive as Gesink has not shown a knack for flat sprints. Rabobank also brings Lars Boom, who won a stage at the Vuelta a España, and up-and-coming classics talent Sébastian Langevelde.

Jakob Fuglsang finished second behind Robert Gesink at Giro dell’Emilia. Fuglsang adds to a string of near-misses, which includes several top five stage finishes at the Vuelta a España. The young Dane, who comes to road racing from mountain bike racing, is a rider you want to join your break: he’ll do his share of the work and then some. Plainly, Fuglsang still has a few tactical lessons yet to learn. The Saxo Bank rider has a smooth style on the climbs and descends well. The Giro di Lombardia suits his characteristics and in time, Fuglsang should thrive in the hilly classics. For now, it’s a little early to expect a win from the young Dane, though he is likely to figure in the finale as his ride at the Giro dell’Emilia showed him to be on excellent form. Alexandr Kolobnev, who finished second at Worlds will also ride for Saxo Bank. Kolobnev is something of a man of mystery, achieving his best results at Worlds before disappearing for much of the remainder of the season, a disappearance in part resulting from the dominance of his team-mates Fränk and Andy Schleck. Kolobnev did finish 9th at this year’s Liège-Bastogne-Liège behind Andy Schleck and 6th at the Amstel Gold Race. Kolobnev can climb and as he showed at Mendrisio when he won the sprint for second, Kolobnev can finish the deal at the line. Why not a good finish at Lombardia? Surprisingly, the Saxo Bank rider has no previous results at the Falling Leaves. No time like the present.

Filippo Pozzato also has no previous results at the Giro di Lombardia and recently confided to the press that he would like to win the Italian monument. Pozzato has achieved most of his results in the early season classics including a win at Milano-Sanremo, a win at Omloop het Volk, and high placings at both the Ronde van Vlaanderen and Paris-Roubaix. This year, he won the Italian National Championship from a bunch sprint ahead of Damiano Cunego. Though he placed 4th at Paris-Tours, Pozzato faded in the final lap at Mendrisio and has not shown especially well in the hilly classics. All the same, the Italian leads the Russian team Katusha at this year’s Giro di Lombardia, where he starts as a long-shot for victory.

Team Astana brings Alexandre Vinokourov, Janez Brajkovic, and Chris Horner to this year’s race. Vinokourov has returned to racing after a suspension for blood-doping and has taken to attacking recent races with all his former zeal. He has few results to show for it just yet. Janez Brajkovic finished second at the Giro di Lombardia last year, and celebrated like he’d won it. Perhaps he forgot Cunego had gone up the road. Or, he was just that excited. Brajkovic reported Tuesday that he had fallen ill, so his way to a repeat of last year’s success is not especially clear. Horner, meanwhile, returns to racing after crashing out of the Vuelta a España. The American finished seventh in last year’s edition of the Giro di Lombardia, his best result at a major classic. Though his American fans will hope for a big win from Horner, his lack of racing kilometers in recent weeks make this a tall order.

Other Riders To Watch

Dubbed Bettini’s successor by some Italian cycling aficionados, Giovanni Visconti finished 2nd at both GP Beghelli and Coppa Sabatini, and did stellar work in the early break at Worlds. At the same time, the top level results have proven elusive for the former Italian National Champion, and Visconti has enjoyed most of his best days in the Italian semi-classics. Visconti has the right combination of skills for this race, but has yet to go big at a major race. There’s always a first, but a win here would be a surprise.

Ivan Basso has made the podium at Giro di Lombardia in the past, but his slow speed accelerations and lack of a finishing sprint do not bode well for his chances. Basso has never won a major one day race and his diesel engine is more suited to the grand tours. That seems unlikely to change. Basso shares leadership at this Giro di Lombardia with the ambitious Franco Pellizotti, who would dearly like to wrest control of Liguigas-Doimo from Basso, especially for next year’s Giro. But that’s a story for another day. Both riders should be near the front of the Autumn monument, but neither ranks among the favorites to win.

Dan Martin of Garmin-Slipstream has aimed his fall training at this Giro di Lombardia and reportedly came out of the Vuelta with flying form. Craig Lewis of Columbia-HTC finished 10th last year at La Foglie Morte while riding for his team-mate Morris Possoni. Thomas Lövkvist of Columbia-HTC finished 3rd at Giro dell’Emilia behind Gesink and Fuglsang. Johnny Hoogerland of Vacansoleil never missed a break at the Vuelta a España, and will certainly be on the attack here. Can he match the 3rd place finish of Borut Božič at Paris-Tours? Stranger things have happened.

The Giro di Lombardia includes all the elements of classic Italian racing. The course favors the light, punchy riders who can both climb and sprint. The roads are narrow and technical, and the racing rewards skilled bike handling, though of a different sort than the cobbles, crosswinds, and bike paths of Belgium. The winner will need fabulous form, smart tactics, mad skillz for the descents, and a bit of luck to reach the finish in Como first. In boca al lupo!

Also, see
Lombardia'09: The PEZ Preview — pezcyclingnews

Teams and Rosters are now up