Clarified: The Future of Tirreno-Adriatico, Milan-Sanremo and Il Lombardia

The statements made by Michele Acquarone, Managing Director at RCS Sport, that were quoted in the Dutch De Telegraaf newspaper have been clarified by Acquarone. "My friends of the Telegraaf have exaggerated my thoughts but the substance of what they have written is correct. My comments were much wider than what was reported and which covered the problem of overcrowding on the racing calendar, and the overlap of important races. For example, Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico. But, I want to add that Tirreno-Adriatico is a flagship event for RCS Sport and our aim is to give it the right visibility. For years we have a cast that is better than Paris-Nice but we have to collide with the force of ASO (the Tour de France organizer) and the contracts that are "imposed" on broadcasters. We are not so powerful but with the new agreement signed with IMG we hope to move forward. We cannot sit still and suffer forever. "

Acquarone continued regarding moving Milan-Sanremo and Il Lombardia to Sundays rather then the Saturdays when they are held now, "There are those who are studying the problem to ensure that our races are seen by all. Our intent is to further enhance our great heritage, not wasting it."

"The future is now," continued Acquarone. "The UCI has already opened discussions to study how to solve the problem of the calendar and it has already held a first meeting in Paris which was attended by Mauro Vegni. And I'm sure we can reach a good solution for the UCI, for RCS Sport and cycling. These are my thoughts: the Telegraaf exaggerated some comments but I want to be clear that Tirreno-Adriatico, Milan-Sanremo and Il Lombardia will not be touched other than on the calendar."

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Tirreno-Adriatico Charity Project for Haiti

RCS Sport and La Gazzetta dello Sport in collaboration with the Fondazione Francesca Rava – N.P.H. Italia Onlus are auctioning Tirreno-Adriatico autographed jerseys to benefit Haiti earthquake victims.

The auction is taking place on Italian ebay, click here. The jerseys being auctioned are:

Maglia Azzurra / BMC Racing Team ( signed by Cadel Evans)

Maglia Azzurra – Classifica generale (signed by Lars Boom, Tyler Farrar, Robert Gesink, Cadel Evans)

Maglia Rossa – Classifica a punti (signed by Alessandro Petacchi, Juan José Haedo, Tyler Farrar, Michele Scarponi)

Maglia Verde – Classifica GPM (signed by Javier Aramendia, Davide Malacarne)

Maglia Bianca – Classifica miglior giovane (signed by Robert Gesink, Damiano Caruso)

At the moment there are 5 days remaining in the auction. Bid often for a good cause!

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2011 Tirreno-Adriatico, Stage 7

After the short, flat, 9.3 km time trial in San Benedetto del Tronto the overall victory went to Cadel Evans. Robert Gesink, 9th at the finish, climbed to 2nd in the standings and Michele Scarponi finished 3rd. Hampered by a cold, Ivan Basso finished 32nd (43 seconds behind Cancellara) and slipped to 4th place overall ahead of Vincenzo Nibali of Liquigas, which carried off the team trophy.

"I'm extremely pleased that I rode so well today and throughout the entire race. I worked very hard this winter, training alone for hours. Every day I rode my bike I was thinking about Aldo Sassi, just like today", said Evans. "My focus remains on the Tour de France, but I always prefer to have some results beforehand."

Fabian Cancellara won the the last time trial of the Tirreno-Adriatico followed Lars Boom (at 9 secs) and the Italian youngster Adriano Malori (19 secs).

The performance of key riders as assessed by La Gazzetta dello Sport:

EVANS 8.5 - Started the Tirreno with just two days' racing in his legs. Burned up the road and scored a crucial success at Macerata. This victory shows yet again what an exemplary professional Evans is. Not starting the Sanremo on Saturday, March 19 (riding instead the Volta a Catalunya stage race that begins Monday).

CANCELLARA 7.5 - Bossed the time trial as expected, despite lacking in fitness, and gave the Leopard Trek team its first victory in a big race. Anybody expecting to win the Sanremo will have to go through Spartacus.

GESINK 7 - A rider with a future. Overall leader until the tough stages. Recently bereft of his father, he wanted to throw in the towel at Macerata. A talk with his mother set him up again and in today's trial he was the best of the placed riders.

SCARPONI 7 - Won at Chieti and was no slouch in today's trial. But he won't be happy with a final 3rd place.

GILBERT 7 - Won with a fine swoop at Castelraimondo, but failed to shine at Chieti and Macerata. Not yet on his best form.

CUNEGO 6.5 - Did a fine job of work for Scarponi. More of a helper than a spearhead. Sharp, but lacking the killer instinct. Next out in the Coppi&Bartali.

DI LUCA 6.5 - Surprisingly quick in his comeback race. Determined as always, he tried to win but couldn't make it. No Sanremo for him, he'll be starting the Catalunya.

BASSO 6 - Pushed hard but the course was not suited to him. Troubled by fatigue and painful limbs over the last two days, he disappointed in the time trial. Monday's Catalunya will tell us if he can bounce back.

NIBALI 6 - Had a hard time in the team trials, then steadily brightened. Yet to hit top form, as was clear at Macerata, he paid the price in the final trial. Already looking to spring a surprise on Saturday.

PETACCHI 6 - Looked the best bet for an Italian win in the sprint at Sanremo. Pulled out of the time trial with symptoms of bronchitis.

VISCONTI 6 - The Italian champion's repeated attacks lacked the final thrust. Perhaps it was bad luck, perhaps he got his tactics wrong. Had a big hand in Gesink's overall 2nd place when the Dutchman was in trouble as race leader at Castelraimondo.

CAVENDISH 4.5 - Two sprint finishes and nothing but 19th place to show for it. In trouble on every climb, he looked overweight.

A. SCHLECK 4.5 - The only big name to fail in all the race stages.

FREIRE (no mark) - If his name wasn't Freire this would be a serious failure. But we're used to now-you-see-him-now-you-don't.

Final top 10 GC:
1 Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing Team 27:37:37
2 Robert Gesink (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team 0:00:11
3 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:00:15
4 Ivan Basso (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:00:24
5 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:00:30
6 Marco Pinotti (Ita) HTC-Highroad 0:00:39
7 Tiago Machado (Por) Team RadioShack 0:00:42
8 Damiano Cunego (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:00:50
9 Philippe Gilbert (Bel) Omega Pharma-Lotto 0:00:57
10 Thomas Lövkvist (Swe) Sky Procycling 0:00:58

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2011 Tirreno-Adriatico, Stage 6

Cadel Evans continues to dominate the Tirreno-Adriatico, former World Champion, leads the rankings and gave another solid performance yesterday as he won the 6th stage which saw the race arrive in Macerata after a final two and a half kilometre climb. Evans arrived ahead of the Italian Champion Giovanni Visconti, last year’s Vuelta winner, Vincenzo Nibali, and Michele Scarponi. Scarponi was unable to take full advantage of the good work his teammate Damiano Cunego did in the closing phase of this stage, as with a final sprint of just over two kilometres he tried to break away with a pack of elite towards the finish line.

After the finish Evans said, "Can you believe how thin I am? I’ve been working hard, I rarely fired up the barbeque this winter. The programme developed with the Centro Mapei this year has been slightly different and now I am seeing the results. I am also pleased for the team. The dedication? Every time I get on the bike my thoughts go out to Aldo Sassi, we worked together for many years.”

Now the team captain of the BMC has a lead in the overall rankings of 9” on Scarponi and 12” of Ivan Basso, who will try to work his way back up in the final chrono session today on the traditional seaside course of San Benedetto del Tronto (a flat, short, 9.3 Km). It won’t be easy as Evans is also doing well and can defend himself in the time trials; furthermore he has already demonstrated he is on great form.

The final 8 km of the stage:


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2011 Tirreno-Adriatico, Stage 5

The 244 kilometre stage, which is the longest in the Spring races apart from those monumental ones like Sanremo or Fiandre, was won in a sprint finish by Belgian Philippe Gilbert. Gilbert also won the Strade Bianche two weeks ago in Siena.

The cyclists who figured most in today's stage were Davide Malacarne (Quick Step)and Andrey Amador (Movistar) who is from Costa Rica. Amador was wounded in his home country on December 29th when he was attacked by thugs who wanted to steal his Pinarello bike. He was beaten up and left on the bank of a river. Amador spent three weeks in hospital.

With three others Malacarne and Amador attacked at km 7, just before Pescara, and they were caught up with 130 metres from the finish because they had slowed their pace too much waiting for the sprint.

Cadel Evans is now the race leader in the maglia azzurra but Basso, Cunego, Scarponi, Nibali and Gesink are all within 12 seconds. All that remains is the 182 kilometers to the finish in Macerata today, the last kilometre having an average gradient of 11.3% and peaks of 18% which are repeated 4 times, and then finally on Tuesday the last time trial in San Benedetto del Tronto of 9.3 km with a flat finish.

Top 10 GC:
1 Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing Team 22:48:45
2 Ivan Basso (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:00:02
3 Damiano Cunego (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:00:03
4 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre - ISD 0:00:05
5 Robert Gesink (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team
6 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale 0:00:12
7 Philippe Gilbert (Bel) Omega Pharma-Lotto 0:00:23
8 Thomas Lövkvist (Swe) Sky Procycling 0:00:27
9 Marco Pinotti (Ita) HTC-Highroad
10 Tiago Machado (Por) Team RadioShack 0:00:32



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2011 Tirreno-Adriatico, Stage 4

Michele Scarponi was once more crowned king of the Chieti finish. It was Scarponi followed by Cunego, Evans, Basso and Di Luca. The blue leader's jersey is now on the shoulders of Dutchman Robert Gesink, who leads Evans (by 10 seconds), Basso (12 secs), Scarponi (15 secs) and Cunego (19 secs). But the overall leader was struggling at the end and admitted: "It wasn't my day."

Today: another 240 km and 3200 metres of climbing await, and the most gruelling stage of all looks set to be accompanied by rain right from the start in Chieti. There is a climb up the 1455-metre Sassotetto (2°C at the top), which is 90 km before the end, and a finale that takes in the rolling hills of Marcerata before a 2% finish in Castelraimondo. "Everybody expects me to keep doing better and better," explained 31-year-old Michele Scarponi, in his first season with Saronni's Lampre-ISD. "This hill brings me luck and it was harder this time too. But I did push my luck a bit. Damiano and I raced really well together. What we have in common is our desire to win. What would it be like to pass through my home in Filottrano with the leader's jersey? Great, but it's important to take the jersey in the final stage in San Benedetto: that's where I lost it to Garzelli last year."

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A Minute of Silence at Tirreno-Adriatico

Riders, teams, organizers and the public observed a minute's silence at 9.15 am today in memory of the victims of the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan yesterday.

In particular, the riders were wrapped around Japanese rider Fumiyuki Beppu (Radioshack). Beppu is the sole rider from Japan in the race.

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2011 Tirreno-Adriatico, Stage 3

Argentine Juan Josè "JJ" Haedo (Saxo Bank-SunGard) won the 189 km 3rd stage to Perugia with a sprint victory over Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Cervelo) and Daniel Oss (Liquigas-Cannondale), respectively 2nd and 3rd. Alessandro Petacchi (Lampre-Isd) finished 4th. Farrar remains in the maglia azzurra.

After his victory, JJ said, "The victory today will be a surprise to many of you but it's not for me or for my team. My dad was a racer and his passion made ​​me fall in love with cycling since I was a kid. Being an Argentine cyclist means being most of the year away from my home and my parents: it weighs on me a bit but on the other hand I am tranquil because I know they understand me."

About Sanremo: "I really like it and so far I have only raced it in 2007 without getting a good result. That is why I asked the team to participate in the Tirreno-Adriatico, to better prepare for the Super Classic. It is an unpredictable race but I will try to win it."

Today and tomorrow are very long, difficult stages of 240 km suited for GC contenders Basso, Scarponi, and Gesink. Pozzato may figure in the battle on the road.

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2011 Tirreno-Adriatico, Stage 2

Tyler Farrar is the new leader of the Tirreno-Adriatico. His first-place finish in the second stage is confirmation that he will be a threat in Sanremo in 9 days' time. Today he was aided by a very special team-mate: none other than world champion Thor Hushovd who ws Farrar's leadout man.

Alessandro Petacchi finished a promising second despite racing with respiratory problems.

Top 10 GC:
1 Tyler Farrar (USA) Team Garmin-Cervelo 5:14:13
2 Tom Leezer (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team 0:00:01
3 Lars Boom (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team
4 Sebastiaan Langeveld (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team
5 Oscar Freire Gomez (Spa) Rabobank Cycling Team
6 Robert Gesink (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team
7 Bram Tankink (Ned) Rabobank Cycling Team
8 Juan José Haedo (Arg) Saxo Bank Sungard 0:00:08
9 Andreas Klier (Ger) Team Garmin-Cervelo 0:00:10
10 Roger Hammond (GBr) Team Garmin-Cervelo

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2011 Tirreno-Adriatico, Stage 1

Rabobank with Lars Boom, Oscar Freire, Rick Flens, Robert Gesink, Sebastian Langeveld, Tom Leezer, Bram Tankink and Maarten Wynants won the team time-trial over a 16.8 km race on the streets of Marina di Carrara. The Dutch team covered the distance in 18:08 (55,588 km/h), 9 seconds ahead of Hushovd's Garmin-Cervelo team and 10 ahead of the favorite HTC with Cavendish. The blue leader's jersey went to 25 year-old Dutchman Lars Boom who was first to cross the finishing-line.


1. Rabobank in 18:08
2. Garmin Cervelo in 18:17 (+9)
3. HTC High Road in 18:18 (+10)
4. Saxo Bank Sungard in 18:19 (+11)
5. Liquigas Cannondale in 18:30 (+22)
6. BMC in 18:34 (+26)
7. Leopard Trek in 18:37 (+29)
8. Radioshack in 18:38 (+30)
9. Sky in 18:41 (+33)
10. Lampre ISD in 18:47 (+39)
11. Omega Pharma Lotto in 18:49 (+41)
12. Acqua&Sapone in 18:55 (+47)
13. Movistar in 18:59 (+51)
14. Vacansoleil in 18:59 (+51)
15. Astana in 18:59 (+52)
16. Katusha in 19:01 (+53)
17. Farnese Vini Neri a 19:03 (+55)
18. AG2r in 19:05 (+57)
19. Quick Step in 19:16 (+1:08)
20. Euskaltel in 19:21 (+1:13)

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46th Edition of Tirreno-Adriatico Stage Race Starts Tomorrow

The seven stage Tirreno-Adriatico 2011 begins tomorrow in Tuscany in the town of Marina di Carrara.

The race begins with a 16.8 km team time trial along the coastline in Marina di Carrara, followed two fast stages favoring sprinters (Carrara to Indicatore, Arezzo and Terranuova to Bracciolini, Perugia) followed by opportunites for the climbers on two long stages of 240 km each (Narni to Chieti and Chieti to Castelraimondo). A very challenging arrival will follow in the sixth stage, from Ussita to Macerata, where racers will climb the Madonna del Monte three times before riders face the 18% grade up to the finish line in the historical town center. The final stage will be a short time trial (9.3 km) which will take place on the coast road in San Benedetto del Tronto.

Thor Hushovd, Vincenzo Nibali, Ivan Basso, Mark Cavendish, Stefano Garzelli, Cadel Evans, Fabian Cancellara and Alessandro Petacchi in Marina di Carrara before the start of the race:

Start list:

Acqua & Sapone
o 1 Stefano Garzelli (Ita)
o 2 Rafai Chtioui (Tun)
o 3 Massimo Codol (Ita)
o 4 Alessandro Donati (Ita)
o 5 Fabio Taborre (Ita)
o 6 Vladimir Miholjevic (Cro)
o 7 Danilo Napolitano (Ita)
o 8 Alessandro Proni (Ita)

AG2R La Mondiale
o 11 Rinaldo Nocentini (Ita)
o 12 Mickaël Chérel (Fra)
o 13 Martin Elmiger (Swi)
o 14 Sébastien Hinault (Fra)
o 15 Yuriy Krivtsov (Ukr)
o 16 David Lelay (Fra)
o 17 Lloyd Mondory (Fra)
o 18 Matteo Montaguti (Ita)

BMC Racing Team
o 21 Cadel Evans (Aus)
o 22 Alessandro Ballan (Ita)
o 23 Marcus Burghardt (Ger)
o 24 George Hincapie (USA)
o 25 Mauro Santambrogio (Ita)
o 26 Manuel Quinziato (Ita)
o 27 Greg Van Avermaet (Bel)
o 28 Michael Schär (Swi)

Euskaltel - Euskadi
o 31 Egoi Martinez De Esteban (Spa)
o 32 Daniel Sesma (Spa)
o 33 Jonathan Castroviejo Nicolas (Spa)
o 34 Francisco Javier Aramendia Llorente (Spa)
o 35 Jon Izaguirre Insausti (Spa)
o 36 Ivan Murillo Velasco (Spa)
o 37 Amets Txurruka (Spa)
o 38 Juan Jose Oroz Ugalde (Spa)

Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli
o 41 Giovanni Visconti (Ita)
o 42 Diego Caccia (Ita)
o 43 Francesco Failli (Ita)
o 44 Oscar Gatto (Ita)
o 45 Leonardo Giordani (Ita)
o 46 Davide Ricci Bitti (Ita)
o 47 Andrea Noe' (Ita)
o 48 Patrick Sinkewitz (Ger)

HTC-Highroad
o 51 Mark Cavendish (GBr)
o 52 Michael Albasini (Swi)
o 53 Bernhard Eisel (Aut)
o 54 Bert Grabsch (Ger)
o 55 Marco Pinotti (Ita)
o 56 Mark Renshaw (Aus)
o 57 Hayden Roulston (NZl)
o 58 Peter Velits (Svk)

Katusha Team
o 61 Filippo Pozzato (Ita)
o 62 Giampaolo Caruso (Ita)
o 63 Danilo Di Luca (Ita)
o 64 Alexandr Kolobnev (Rus)
o 65 Aleksandr Kuschynski (Blr)
o 66 Daniel Moreno Fernandez (Spa)
o 67 Luca Paolini (Ita)
o 68 Joaquin Rodriguez (Spa)

Lampre - ISD
o 71 Damiano Cunego (Ita)
o 72 Michele Scarponi (Ita)
o 73 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita)
o 74 Leonardo Bertagnolli (Ita)
o 75 Danilo Hondo (Ger)
o 76 Adriano Malori (Ita)
o 77 Manuele Mori (Ita)
o 78 Przemyslaw Niemiec (Pol)

Liquigas-Cannondale
o 81 Ivan Basso (Ita)
o 82 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita)
o 83 Maciej Bodnar (Pol)
o 84 Damiano Caruso (Ita)
o 85 Tiziano Dall'antonia (Ita)
o 86 Jacopo Guarnieri (Ita)
o 87 Alan Marangoni (Ita)
o 88 Daniel Oss (Ita)

Movistar Team
o 91 David Arroyo Duran (Spa)
o 92 Andrei Amador Bipkazacova (Crc)
o 93 Marzio Bruseghin (Ita)
o 94 Vasili Kiryienka (Blr)
o 95 Ignatas Konovalovas (Ltu)
o 96 Angel Madrazo Ruiz (Spa)
o 97 Branislau Samoilau (Blr)
o 98 Francisco José Ventoso Alberdi (Spa)

Omega Pharma-Lotto
o 101 Philippe Gilbert (Bel)
o 102 André Greipel (Ger)
o 103 Adam Hansen (Aus)
o 104 Olivier Kaisen (Bel)
o 105 Sebastian Lang (Ger)
o 106 Vicente Reynes Mimo (Spa)
o 107 Marcel Sieberg (Ger)
o 108 Frederik Willems (Bel)

Pro Team Astana
o 111 Allan Davis (Aus)
o 112 Enrico Gasparotto (Ita)
o 113 Maxim Iglinskiy (Kaz)
o 114 Assan Bazayev (Kaz)
o 115 Roman Kireyev (Kaz)
o 116 Mirco Lorenzetto (Ita)
o 117 Gorazd Stangelj (Slo)
o 118 Simon Clarke (Aus)

Quickstep Cycling Team
o 121 Tom Boonen (Bel)
o 122 Marco Bandiera (Ita)
o 123 Francesco Chicchi (Ita)
o 124 Dries Devenyns (Bel)
o 125 Davide Malacarne (Ita)
o 126 Kevin Van Impe (Bel)
o 127 Gerald Ciolek (Ger)
o 128 Niki Terpstra (Ned)

Rabobank Cycling Team
o 131 Oscar Freire Gomez (Spa)
o 132 Lars Boom (Ned)
o 133 Rick Flens (Ned)
o 134 Robert Gesink (Ned)
o 135 Sebastiaan Langeveld (Ned)
o 136 Tom Leezer (Ned)
o 137 Bram Tankink (Ned)
o 138 Maarten Wijnants (Bel)

Saxo Bank Sungard
o 141 Nick Nuyens (Bel)
o 142 Baden Cooke (Aus)
o 143 David Tanner (Aus)
o 144 Gustav Erik Larsson (Swe)
o 145 Juan José Haedo (Arg)
o 146 Michael Christiansen Morkov (Den)
o 147 Kasper Klostergaard Larsen (Den)
o 148 Matteo Tosatto (Ita)

Sky Procycling
o 151 Thomas Lövkvist (Swe)
o 152 Kurt-Asle Arvesen (Nor)
o 153 Steven Cummings (GBr)
o 154 Juan Antonio Flecha Giannoni (Spa)
o 155 Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor)
o 156 Mathew Hayman (Aus)
o 157 Ian Stannard (GBr)
o 158 Christopher Sutton (Aus)

Team Garmin-Cervelo
o 161 Thor Hushovd (Nor)
o 162 Tyler Farrar (USA)
o 163 Ramunas Navardauskas (Ltu)
o 164 Roger Hammond (GBr)
o 165 Andreas Klier (Ger)
o 166 Brett Lancaster (Aus)
o 167 David Zabriskie (USA)
o 168 Matthew Wilson (Aus)

Team Leopard-Trek
o 171 Fabian Cancellara (Swi)
o 172 Andy Schleck (Lux)
o 173 Daniele Bennati (Ita)
o 174 Fabian Wegmann (Ger)
o 175 Stuart O'Grady (Aus)
o 176 Joost Posthuma (Ned)
o 177 Davide Viganò (Ita)
o 178 Tom Stamsnijder (Ned)

Team Radioshack
o 181 Robbie McEwen (Aus)
o 182 Fumiyuki Beppu (Jpn)
o 183 Ben Hermans (Bel)
o 184 Tiago Machado (Por)
o 185 Dmitriy Muravyev (Kaz)
o 186 Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr)
o 187 Grégory Rast (Swi)
o 188 Sébastien Rosseler (Bel)

Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
o 191 Borut Bozic (Slo)
o 192 Wout Poels (Ned)
o 193 Gorik Gardeyn (Bel)
o 194 Marco Marcato (Ita)
o 195 Jens Mouris (Ned)
o 196 Alberto Ongarato (Ita)
o 197 Mirko Selvaggi (Ita)
o 198 Frederik Veuchelen (Bel)

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Tirreno-Adriatico Over, Next Milan-Sanremo (and Lance!)

The seven stage Tirreno-Adriatico was a very good race with a particularly exciting final stage in which the race was won in dramatic fashion.

At the start of stage seven, race leader Michele Scarponi (Androni Giocattoli) had a two second lead over second placed Stefano Garzelli (Acqua & Sapone). The stage had two intermediate sprints for time bonuses and in each Garzelli was able to win one second. That left Scarponi and Garzelli tied on time. However, Garzelli became the virtual race leader based upon previous stage placings. Scarponi was unable to take any bonus points at the finish leaving Garzelli as the race winner.

Saturday, March 20th, is the 298 km Milan-Sanremo. Breaking news is that Lance Armstrong has decided to race. More Milan-Sanremo race details tomorrow.

Photo: final podium: Scarponi, Garzelli, Evans

Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondo, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are very welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,300 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog and there is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

Finish in Macerata at Tirreno-Adriatico

My friend Ernesto's photographs of the finishing climb at yesterday's Tirreno-Adriatico stage into Macerata.

Thanks Ernesto!

Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondo, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are very welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,300 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog and there is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

Tirreno-Adriatico Will Be Internet Streamed

Beginning at 1530 (Italy) the stages of the 2010 Tirreno-Adriatico, which begins tomorrow, will be live streamed at www.gazzetta.it

The other very good news is that Milan-Sanremo (20 March) and the Giro d'Italia (8 to 30 May), and the Giro di Lombardia (16 October) will also be streamed.

To reiterate, www.cyclingfans.com, also puts up the links to live video feeds of many races. This site is in English which may make it easier to find the feed(s).

In Italy, Tirreno-Adriatico will also be followed on TV on Rai 3 (direct daily from 15.30 to 16.30) and Rai Sport + (direct daily from 15.00 to around 16.30). One report says that in the USA the programming will be available on the Universal Sports (US) channel, check your schedules.

Alessandro Petacchi, whose presence was in doubt after a crash in training yesterday, will start.

Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondo, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are very welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,300 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog and there is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page.

2010 Tirreno-Adriatico

The 45th ediiton of Tirreno-Adriatico will be held March 10-16, 2010. The race this year will be dedicated to the memory of Franco Ballerini.

The stages are:
March 10 at 12.45: Livorno – Rosignano Solvay, 148 km
(start at Via Firenze SS 1 – arrival at Via S. Allende)

March 11 at 12.15: Montecatini Terme – Montecatini Terme, 165 km
(start at SS 435 - arrival at P.le della Torretta)

March 12 at 12.25: San Miniato – Monsummano Terme, 159 km
(start at Via Roma – arrival at Piazza Giusti)

March 13 at 9.40: San Gemini – Chieti, 243 km
(start at Via Ternana/SS 79 – arrival at Corso Marruccino)

March 14 at 9.45: Chieti – Colmurano, 234 km
(start at Chieti Scalo - arrival at Piazza Umberto I)

March 15 at 13.00: Montecosaro – Macerata, 134 km
(start at SP 74 - arrival at Piazza della Libertà)

March 16 at 12.00: Civitanova Marche – San Benedetto del Tronto, 164 km
(start at SS 16 – arrival at Lungomare)

Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondo, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are very welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,200 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog and there is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page. Cinelli fan? Visit CINELLI ONLY.

2010 Tirreno-Adriatico Publicity

The 45th edition of the Tirreno-Adriatico, which this year will be dedicated to the memory of Franco Ballerini, coach of the Italian national team, will start March 10th in Livorno and end in San Benedetto del Tronto on March 16th.

The publicity campaign will use an image of Cadel Evans leading the peloton as the Tirreno and Adriatico seas part. The artwork was created by advertising agency McCann Erickson.

The teams invited to the race are:
Acqua & Sapone-Mokambo
AG2R La Mondiale
Androni-Diquigiovanni
Astana
BMC
Caisse d'Epargne
Cervélo Test Team
Colnago-CSF Inox
Euskaltel-Euskadi
Francaise Des Jeux
Garmin-Transitions
ISD-Neri
Lampre-Farnese Vini
Liquigas-Doimo
Omega Pharma-Lotto
Quick Step
Rabobank
Sky Professional Cycling Team
Team HTC-Columbia
Team Katusha
Team Milram
Team Saxo Bank

Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondo, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are very welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,200 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog and there is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page. Cinelli fan? Visit CINELLI ONLY.

Invitations to Italian Classics

March is a round the corner, finally! RCS Sport, also organizer of the Giro d'Italia, has announced the list of teams invited to its Montepaschi Strade Bianche Toscana (March 6), Tirreno-Adriatico (stage race March 10-16) and Milano-Sanremo (March 20) races.

The only Italian Pro Continental team not to be invited to any of the races was the Ceramica Flaminia squad of Riccardo Riccò (whose suspension ends on March 19th).

De Rosa-Stac Plastic team was not eligible for entry into Tirreno-Adriatico and Milano-Sanremo as they were not selected as a "wild card" team.

Invitations:

Montepaschi Strade Bianche Toscana, March 6

Acqua & Sapone-Mokambo
AG2R La Mondiale
Androni-Diquigiovanni
Astana
BMC
Cervélo Test Team
Garmin-Transition
ISD-Neri
Lampre-Farnese Vini
Liquigas-Doimo
Omega Pharma-Lotto
Sky Professional Cycling Team
Team HTC-Columbia
Team Katusha
Team Saxo Bank

Tirreno-Adriatico, March 10-16

Acqua & Sapone-Mokambo
AG2R La Mondiale
Androni-Diquigiovanni
Astana
BMC
Caisse d'Epargne
Cervélo Test Team
Colnago-CSF Inox
Euskaltel-Euskadi
Francaise Des Jeux
Garmin-Transitions
ISD-Neri
Lampre-Farnese Vini
Liquigas-Doimo
Omega Pharma-Lotto
Quick Step
Rabobank
Sky Professional Cycling Team
Team HTC-Columbia
Team Katusha
Team Milram
Team Saxo Bank

Milano-Sanremo, March 20

Acqua & Sapone-Mokambo
AG2R La Mondiale
Androni-Diquigiovanni
Astana
Bbox Bouygues Telecom
BMC
Caisse d'Epargne
Carmiooro-NGC
Cervélo Test Team
Colnago-CSF Inox
Euskaltel-Euskadi
Francaise Des Jeux
Garmin-Transition
ISD-Neri
Lampre-Farnese Vini
Liquigas-Doimo
Omega Pharma-Lotto
Quick Step
Rabobank
Sky Professional Cycling Team
Team HTC-Columbia
Team Katusha
Team Milram
Team RadioShack
Team Saxo Bank

Photo: 2009 Montepaschi Strade Bianche Toscana

Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondo, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, etc. are very welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. There are more than 1,200 stories in this blog. The search feature to the right works best for finding subjects in the blog and there is also a translate button at the bottom so you can translate each page. Cinelli fan? Visit CINELLI ONLY.

44th Tirreno-Adriatico Images

The 44th Tirreno-Adriatico was won by Michele Scarponi (who is from the Le Marche region) of the Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni-Androni Giocattoli team.

Photos: sea-to-sea race (not quite sea-to-sea), four race photos, the winner Michele Scarponi

Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal welcome; contact veronaman@gmail.com

Miss Tirreno-Adriatico

The contest for "Miss Tirreno-Adriatico" (also "La Miss Dei Due Mari") has been quite entertaining. Contestants submit their photos to the event website and readers vote. Above are some of the contestants, representing cities which are at the start and end of stages. Race overview previously written at http://italiancyclingjournal.blogspot.com/2009/02/tirreno-adriatico.html

Stories: Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal welcome; contact veronaman@gmail.com