15 May 2017

Giro 100: the numbers at half way

The first 10 days of the 100th Giro d’Italia have drawn huge amounts of interest from fans globally, and from the worldwide media. While Nairo Quintana is in the Maglia Rosa after winning at the Blockhaus, here are a few numbers as we approach the half way stage:

• The final part of yesterday’s stage was watched on TV by 2,749 million viewers, with a share of 22%.
• The Giro d’Italia’s Twitter profile has exceeded 19.5 million views and the hashtag #Giro100 has become highly popular among participating teams and riders.
• The official website giroditalia.it had more than 4.5 million visitors during the first week of the event, which is a 50% increase compared to last year.
• The Giro’s Facebook page now has more than 1 million fans, and has recorded 5.5 million video views.
• On Instagram the Giro d’Italia has more than 1 million fans, with many images and stories published every day.
• 1,600 media representatives have been accredited so far, including the locals in each region visited in the first half of the 100th Giro.
• The Ride Green project is highly successful –  31.7 metric tons of rubbish was collected from the first nine stages, 88% of which will be recycled.
• 190 riders are due to start Stage 10, a 39.8km Individual Time Trial from Foligno to Montefalco. The first rider in action will be Matteo Pelucchi at 12.45; the last starter will be Nairo Quintana at 16.24. The Start Order can be downloaded here.

TOMORROW’S STAGE
Stage 10 – Foligno – Montefalco 39.8km – total elevation 400m

The Individual Time Trial route is varied, and features a long, flat and straight section, followed by fairly complex climbs and descents. After the start in Foligno, the route quickly leaves the old town centre (on narrow roads) and takes relatively wide and mainly straight roads for more than 12km, until past Bevagna (time recording). The route then starts to climb at an average 4-5% gradient, and reaches Madonna delle Grazie, where the road becomes a false flat up. A fast-running and technical descent twists and turns all the way to San Marco, where the road flattens and straightens out. The route takes a U-turn in Bastardo (second time recording), then a false-flat uphill drag leads to Montefalco. The slopes are never steep, yet the climb is unrelenting. The road, narrowed at points, leads all the way to the walled city of Montefalco, heading for the finish of the ITT.

Final kilometres
The final kilometres are slightly uphill. In the last km, the route descends and passes through a gateway, and then goes up again, on a short, steep ramp, leading into the 200m uphill home straight, on 6m wide asphalt road.