On Monday, 35 teams and 175 riders will battle out on the roads of Villa di Cordignano (Italy). Team Visma – Lease a bike looks for an encore, while Astana and UAE will try to get in the way. Italian hopes rely on Bardiani, Zalf and Colpack
Easter Monday for cycling fans means Giro del Belvedere, and once again the Italian classic is poised to deliver a top-level race. On April 1st, the best riders of the U23 category will challenge each other in a quest for glory on the roads of Villa di Cordignano and Treviso’s province, in the Veneto region.
The 85th Giro del Belvedere kickstarts the second century of the event, whose first edition dates back to 1923. Over the decades, the race proved its significance by consecrating many young talents, who paved their way and established their bright careers by winning on the finish line in Cordignano: from Maurizio Fondriest, Silvio Martinello and Stefan Küng, to the latest trio of rising stars: Juan Ayuso in 2021, Romain Grégoire in 2022 and Johannes Staune-Mittet in 2023.
The starting field feats no less than 175 riders over 35 teams, with 18 squads bearing the Italian flag and 17 international from 15 different Countries, led by Dutch juggernaut Visma – Lease a Bike Development Team. The reigning champions look to confirm their title and dominance in the category, and will line up with Dutch Menno Huising and Darren Van Bekkum, Norwegian talent Jorgen Nordhagen, Brit Tomos Pattinson and home athlete Dario Belletta.
Italian hopes mostly rely on Alessandro Romele (Astana Qazaqstan Development), Giulio Pellizzari (VF-Group Bardiani-CSF Faizanè) and Luca Giaimi (UAE Team Emirates Gen Z, who will also line up the talented US rider Owen Cole). Zalf Euromobil Fior, UC Trevigiani and MBH Bank Colpack Ballan will also try to take a home rider back to the top step of the podium: the last Italian winner to date at Giro del Belvedere was Samuele Battistella in 2019.
The course underwent a few variations from the 2023 edition, and now records 168 km and 2085 mt of elevation gain. Highlights of the race will be the Conche circuit, followed by the tough ascents the Piai della Vigna (500 m long with 9% average gradient) and the traditional Montaner (1.5 km at 12% average) and Via delle Longhe (500 m at 12% average) ascents.
The winner will be awarded in the majestic Villa Mocenigo-Bernardi, also known as Villa Belvedere, in the municipality of Cordignano, where preliminary operations and teams’ presentation will also be held. On Monday, April 1st, the race will kick off at 13.15, and a live commentary will be available on the official website.
