2006 Giro d'Italia

The 89th Giro d'Italia was held from May 6 to May 28, 2006. Italian riders such as Ivan Basso, Damiano Cunego, and defending champion Paolo Savoldelli vied to win their national Grand Tour. It covered convert|3526|km|lk=on beginning in the Belgian mining town of Seraing and ending in Milan.

It was won by Ivan Basso riding for Team CSC in dominant fashion. Basso won three individual stages, as well as the team time trial, along with his fellow CSC riders. Basso won by more than 9 minutes over the next best rider, the largest margin of victory in a Grand Tour in the last three years.

The race introduced a team time trial stage upon its arrival in Italy. This discipline had been absent from the Giro since edition 1989. It also included convert|56.2|km|abbr=on of individual time trials, distributed between the prologue and the long time trial at Pontedera.

It also featured famous climbs, such as the steep Mortirolo and the Monte Bondone. The Plan de Corones was planned to be climbed for the first time, however, bad weather prevented the unpaved climb from being used. It instead saw it's debut in the Giro d'Italia in 2008.

Teams and cyclists

*List of teams and cyclists

tages

Except in the individual and team time trial, the first three riders in every stage receive a time bonus of 20 seconds, 12 seconds, and 8 seconds respectively.

tage 1, 06-05-2006: Seraing, 6.2 km. (ITT)

German Stefan Schumacher became the second man in Gerolsteiner's history to wear the "Maglia rosa" (after Olaf Pollack in 2004) by winning the third stage in Belgium and surpassing Paolo Savoldelli, thanks to time bonuses. Quick Step-Innergetic led the peloton and chased down a breakaway of four. During the chase, Alessandro Petacchi fell and fractured his kneecap, prompting his withdrawal the next day. Paolo Bettini seemed to be the favourite to win, but was blocked by a scooter of the organisation just when Schumacher attacked and could not catch up to the German, who beat José Luis Rubiera to the line.

tage 4, 09-05-2006: Wanze–Hotton, 193 km.

Olaf Pollack (T-Mobile Team) took the Maglia Rosa after the stage.

tage 7, 13-05-2006: Cesena–Saltara, 236 km.

tage 10, 16-05-2006: Termoli–Peschici, 187 km.

tage 13, 20-05-2006: Alessandria–La Thuile, 218 km.

tage 16, 23-05-2006: Rovato–Trento, 173 km.

tage 19, 26-05-2006: Pordenone–Passo di San Pellegrino, 224 km.

Classification Tables

Final General Classification (Maglia rosa)

Combination Classification (Maglia Blu)

ignificance of the Belgian opening

The 2006 Giro opens, and has its first 4 stages in the South-East of Belgium in the Wallonia region. The Giro organisers chose to locate the opening in this region as a homage to the thousands of Italians who moved to the region following the end of World War II in order to find jobs in the coal mines of the area. It is estimated that as many as 300'000 Belgians of Italian origin live in this area. The 2006 Giro will commemorate the deaths of 136 Italian miners who died in the 1956 Bois du Cazier mine disaster. [Tim Maloney, [http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/2006//giro06/ After Belgian antipasto, 2006 Giro has molto mountains for a tough climbers tour] , "CyclingNews", November 13, 2005]

References

External links

* [http://www.ilgiroditalia.it All about giro d'italia, news, team .. (English, Italian)]
* [http://www.gazzetta.it/Speciali/Giroditalia/2006/ Official race website]
* [http://www.grahamwatson.com/2006/giro/coverpage.html Graham Watson – Photography from the race]
* [http://www.ilgiroditalia.eu Giro d'italia (English)]