The 2017 Giro d'Italia will cover all but four of the country's regions and will see the riders tackle all manner of terrain. The route is more than 100 kilometres longer than last year's and features eight medium and five high mountain stages, five summit finishes, and two rides against the clock.
This year's race brings with it a plethora of GC talent with a wide variety of skill-sets that could see the advantage swing from one rider to another in the opening weeks. Early big mountain stages will begin the whittling down process and should set the scene for later in the race.
Movistar's general classification contender, Nairo Quintana, believes that the overall winner will be the rider that conquers the mountains, but the lengthy time trials could have something to say about that.
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Cyclingnews has selected five stages that could prove crucial in the fight for pink this May.
Stage 9: Montenero di Bisaccia to Blockhaus (149km)
The ride to Mount Etna on stage 4 is the first high mountain stage for the riders to tackle, but it is stage 9 to Blockhaus in the central Apennines that will be the sternest test for the general classification hopefuls in the opening week.
Blockhaus first appeared at the Giro d'Italia back in 1967, and it was a young Eddy Merckx that claimed his first ever Giro stage win. Blockhaus has returned intermittently since then, featuring in a total six editions before now - four times as a stage finish. The last outing was in 2009 when Franco Pellizotti won after a solo break, though his win would eventually be scratched from the records after he recorded irregular values in his biological passport.
Stage 10: Foligno to Montefalco (39.8km ITT)
Stage 16: Rovetta to Bormio (222km)
Stage 18: Moena to Ortisei/St. Ulrich (137km)
Stage 21: Monza to Milan (28km ITT)
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
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