Giro d’Italia 2026, Stage 9: route, favourites and where to watch it on TV

From Romagna to Emilia, from the sea to the mountains, from Cervia to Corno alle Scale over 184 kilometres. Before the second rest day, the GC contenders face an important test they cannot afford to fail. The summit finish is sharp, with the real difficulty concentrated in the final three kilometres, but still demanding enough to create meaningful gaps if the race comes alive. In 2004, the only time the Giro finished here, victory went to Gilberto Simoni, a pure climber. Will history repeat itself this time.

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The Route

The route is entirely flat from the start until Silla, although the road begins to rise gently after Sasso Marconi along the historic Porrettana road. At Silla, riders tackle the first classified climb of the day — effectively one continuous ascent with the final climb, separated only by a very short descent — leading to Querciola (Category 3, 11.3 km at 4.3%). A brief downhill follows towards Villaggio Europa (Lizzano in Belvedere) before the final ascent begins.

The climb to Corno alle Scale has only one approach: riders reach the Rifugio Cavone at 1,471 metres above sea level after 10.8 km at an average gradient of around 6%. The decisive section, however, comes in the final 2.7 kilometres, where the average gradient ramps up to 10.1% — and that is where the stage is likely to be won or lost.

The Favourites

The completely flat opening section of the stage suits teams that may want to keep the race under control. Once again, this could be a day for the GC contenders, with Jonas Vingegaard (Visma | Lease a Bike) looking to edge even closer to the Maglia Rosa, while Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain Victorious) will once again have to defend himself by any means necessary.

Trying to challenge the Dane will once again be Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM), who looked exceptionally strong on Blockhaus, Jai Hindley and Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Ben O’Connor (Jayco AlUla), along with Thymen Arensman and Egan Bernal (Netcompany INEOS), Mathys Rondel and Michael Storer (Tudor), and Derek Gee (Lidl-Trek).

Predict the winner with our ‘stage winner Predictor’. CLICK HERE, head to the FanZone and earn one entry into the final prize draw of the Join the FanZone Challenge for every vote you cast. (Voting is open from 20:00 the day before the stage until 10:00 on race day.)

Giro d’Italia 2026, Stage 9: Schedule and TV Coverage

Cervia – Corno alle Scale, 184 km
LIVE coverage begins: 11:05
Start: 12:35
KM 0: 12:50
Expected finish: around 17:00

TV: As usual, RAI will provide free-to-air coverage of every stage of the Giro d’Italia for viewers in Italy. The day begins with “Giro Mattina” on Rai Sport HD, featuring rider presentations and pre-race interviews, followed by “Prima Diretta” on the same channel to cover the start of the stage until 14:00. For the key moments of the race, coverage moves to Rai 2, with “Giro in Diretta” until 16:15, followed immediately by “Giro all’Arrivo”, taking viewers through the decisive phases of the stage right to the finish line. Straight after comes the traditional post-stage analysis show, “Il Processo alla Tappa”, usually lasting around 45 minutes without the need to switch channels. The day concludes on Rai Sport HD with “TGiro” at 20:00, featuring interviews, highlights and commentary, while the most dedicated fans can relive every key moment with “Ri-Giro” at 00:00. The race will also be broadcast live in full on Eurosport, as well as on streaming platforms Discovery+ and HBO Max

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