Giro d'Italia 2024: Into the high mountains for the first time - this is stage 8
Sebastian Lindner
· 11.05.2024
Stage 8 | Saturday, 11 May | Spoleto - Prati di Tivo | 152 kilometres
The Giro really picks up speed on the second weekend. It heads into the high mountains for the first time. From Spoleto, where four stages of the Tour of Italy have started so far, the route takes the riders right across the Apennines. Right from the start, it's up and down without a break. And although the day only has three mountain classifications - including just one in the 1st category - and is only 152 kilometres long, it adds up to 3850 metres in altitude, making the stage one of the toughest of the entire tour.
The main direction of travel is south-east. After a good 20 kilometres, the first mountain has already been crossed, the route then climbs up to Forca Capistrello. The climb is more than 16 kilometres long, with a maximum gradient of twelve percent and an average of 5.6 percent. Only a plateau-like passage and a short descent before the summit push the average down, which means that the mountain is only categorised as 2nd category.
The road continues to go up and down, albeit a little more gently than before. Until around the 100 kilometre mark. Then it's up to the Croce Abbio (3rd category). Alexey Lutsenko (Astana Qazaqstan) will remember this climb - and the rest of the stage - particularly well. Exactly one month ago to the day, the Kazakh won the dress rehearsal, so to speak, for stage 8 of the Giro.
The final 50 kilometres of the Giro d'Abruzzo also formed the finale. Lutsenko won the 3rd stage and ultimately the tour. A 25-kilometre descent awaits him and the rest of the field from Croce Abbio before the 14.6-kilometre final climb to Prati di Tivo. This mountain (1st category) also has a maximum gradient of 12 per cent and an average gradient of seven per cent. The finish is at 1450 metres.
Sporting assessment of the 8th stage
Where there are a lot of hairpin bends, the action is usually intense. 22 of them await on the final climb to Prati di Tivo and will make the favourites for the overall standings sweat profusely. And further separate them in terms of time. However, the gaps could be smaller than would be possible on a stage like this. This is because the tough climb early on should ensure a breakaway group with a strong hold.
Calibres like Nairo Quintana (Movistar), who are already far behind in the overall standings, could ride for a stage win here - if Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) doesn't continue to ride in "cannibal mode". And if it's no longer about the stage win, the GC riders might hold back a little. After all, there are still plenty of difficult stages to make up time on in the course of the tour.
Giro d'Italia 2024 - Stage 8: The most important information at a glance
- Mountain stage with 152 kilometre mountain finish
- Mountain classifications: 3, sprint classifications: 3
- Start time: 12:30 pm
- Estimated arrival time: between 16:57 and 17:33
- TV: from 12:15 pm Eurosport 1
- Live stream: from 12:15 pm Discovery Plus
- More info on TV broadcast & live stream
