The Giro d’Italia begins in Albania today, kicking off three weeks of racing with one of cycling’s most iconic and prestigious trophies up for grabs at the finish line in Rome. This year’s edition is one of the most open in years, with only one of cycling’s ‘Big Four’ in action: 2023 champion Primoz Roglic. Jonas Vingegaard, defending champion Tadej Pogacar, and Remco Evenepoel have all skipped the year’s first Grand Tour to focus on the Tour de France in July, opening the door to a raft of contenders including four other former Giro winners and Pogacar’s teammate, young gun Juan Ayuso, who has leadership at a Grand Tour for the first time.
The opening stage, a 160km run from the port town of Durres to the Albanian capital Tirana, is unlikely to be a battleground for the title contenders, however. The sprinters may be eyeing up the finish but it’s the likes of all-rounders Wout van Aert and Tom Pidcock who are the favourites to get over the punchy hills and have enough left in the legs to fight for the maglia rosa at the end of the day.
The Giro d'Italia 2025 officially kicks off today, Friday, May 9th, with a unique and fascinating first stage: 160 kilometers from Durres to Tirana, Albania. A nervous route, alternating long flat stretches with challenging climbs, perfect for attackers and finishers. The course includes Gracen and the double climb of Surrel. The stage starts with about 60 km of flat terrain towards the hinterland, with intermediate sprints at Paper and Elbasan. The race will heat up with the GPM of Gracen (13 km at 5.1%, max 10%): a second-category climb that will award the first points for the Blue Jersey. After the descent, the riders will face the Red Bull KM intermediate sprint in Sauk, with double bonuses important for the general classification. This is followed by the final circuit with two ascents to Surrel (6.9 km at 4.6%, max 13%), the last of which ends 11 km from the finish. A technical descent and a hairpin bend 500 meters from the finish line will make the sprint uncertain and spectacular.
The main candidate for the first Pink Jersey is Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek): strong in climbs, powerful in sprints, and supported by a solid team. With Wout van Aert still in recovery, the Dane starts in pole position. He will be challenged by Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Olav Kooij (Visma | Lease a Bike), both capable of maintaining high rhythms in climbs and sprinting decisively. Attention also to Paul Magnier, Lamperti, and Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step), as well as resistant sprinters like Orluis Aular, Giovanni Lonardi, Gerben Thijssen, Matteo Moschetti, Milan Fretin, and Max Kanter. Explosive riders like Tom Pidcock, Vendrame, Tratnik, Scaroni, Hermans, and McNulty could take advantage of the climbs and the technical finish to surprise the sprinters. It's difficult to see the contenders for the final podium attacking immediately, but a chaotic finish could entice names like Roglic, Ayuso, Adam and Simon Yates, or Pello Bilbao, ready to seize any opportunity.
Start time: 13:10 Expected arrival: between 17:03 and 17:25 Live TV: RaiSport: from 13:00 to 14:00 Rai2: from 14:00 to 17:15 Eurosport / Discovery+: from 13:30 to 17:45.
In a thrilling opening stage of the Giro d’Italia, former world champion Mads Pedersen narrowly beat Wout van Aert in a sprint finish to claim the first pink jersey of this year’s race, which started in Albania for the first time. Pedersen, who won the world title in 2019 and rides for Lidl-Trek, edged Van Aert by half a wheel in the hilly 160-kilometer (99-mile) stage from Durrës to Tirana, which had a flat finish.
This victory marks Pedersen’s second career stage win in the Giro, having also won in Naples two years ago. Venezuelan rider Orluis Aular crossed the line in third place. The race remains in Albania for two more days, with Stage 2 on Saturday featuring a 13.7-kilometer individual time trial in Tirana that will test overall contenders like Primoz Roglic and Juan Ayuso. The three-week Grand Tour returns to Italy for Stage 4 in Puglia, directly across the Adriatic Sea from Albania, with the grand finish set for Rome on June 1.
As the Giro d’Italia unfolds, the absence of key competitors like Jonas Vingegaard, Tadej Pogacar, and Remco Evenepoel may create an unpredictable atmosphere, giving other riders a chance to shine on this prestigious platform. With the first stage complete and the excitement of the race just beginning, all eyes will be on the upcoming days to see who will emerge as the new leader and potential champion of this iconic event.
