Stage 6 | Thursday, 9 May | Viareggio - Rapolano Terme | 180 kilometres
A year ago, the 10th stage ended in Viareggio, which is in the immediate vicinity of Lido di Caimaiore, where the race had passed the day before, which saw Magnus Cort as the winner. Now the city of 60,000 inhabitants, which last hosted a stage of the Tour of Italy in 2002, is the starting point for the gravel stage of the Giro.
Past Pisa, the first 70 kilometres of the day through Tuscany are almost all straight ahead and without any significant metres in altitude. The route then climbs for ten kilometres to Volterra (4th category). This is where the second, profiled part of the day begins, which brings the first gravel sector of a total of three after a total of 130 kilometres.
Near Siena, the riders take to the roads of Strade Bianche. La Vidritta, the first gravel section of the race through Tuscany, is also the first sector for the Giro starters. This is immediately followed by the second section in Bagnaia, which leads up to Grotti with a few gradients to the 4th category mountain classification.
The route continues on paved roads for just over 20 kilometres before reaching Pievina. There, 2400 metres of gravel - just over ten kilometres in total - are taken under the wheels, which have not yet been ridden at Strade Bianche.
However, this is not the last hurdle on the way to Rapolano Terme, which is welcoming the Giro for the first time. Five kilometres before the finish, an uncategorised climb awaits, which is only a good 1000 metres long, but has an average gradient of 8.4 percent - and 20 percent at the top. The last few metres of the home straight are also still uphill.
Sporting assessment of the 6th stage
If it's not the gravel roads that will make the difference on this stage, then it will be the short, poisonous climb five kilometres before the finish that will create time gaps. But it's likely that both will come together. At the Strade Bianche, Tadej Pogacar proved what he is capable of on this surface. And that's where he outclassed the specialists. His closest rivals for overall victory at the Giro don't feel particularly comfortable on gravel. There will be gaps in the classification, which could sometimes be significant.
Giro d'Italia 2024 - Stage 6: The most important information at a glance
- Hilly stage with gravel sectors over 180 kilometres
- Mountain classifications: 2, sprint classifications: 2
- Start time: 12:45 pm
- Estimated arrival time: between 17:00 and 17:26
