La Primavera – the journey in the spring. The Milano–Sanremo has always been the Start in the Champions League of Cycling. It is the first of five so-called monuments of Cycling. The end of March. Normally. Also, in this Corona jumbling of the year of the Italian classic is the first big race. This Saturday it starts in the Lombard capital, in the middle of the summer.
But only the date is unfamiliar, otherwise the travel to Sanremo, will be different than ever before in its 111-year history. Long had told me that the tradition route along the Ligurian coastline would remain the same, but this proved to be unrealistic. Usually the drive-through of the professionals in the places of the track will be a welcome occasion for folk festivals is, outside of Belgium there is nowhere a comparable enthusiasm for the sport of Cycling in Italy. This year, however, it is forbidden to celebrate publicly.
400 Euro fine
in the destination of Sanremo threaten. There, the mayor Biancheri has adopted a regulation that says anyone below, in the distance to stop. The famous Via Roma, the final straight of the race, should be as empty of people as the places on the way. For infringement, a fine of 400 Euro is threatened. The regulation is "an essential act for the protection of people in times of Corona," said Biancheri. Cycling fans would not adhere to the specifications, would have the police ready to intervene. As Sanremo is also home to all other places by the authorities are stopped, the Public is rigorously excluded. The Classicissima is a bike race in a state of emergency.
the 299-Kilometer-long route, so only the beginning and the end, as we know it. Will have to do without in-between the driver of many kilometers on the sea. The mayors of the coastal towns were not able to meet in the middle of the tourist season, the pads and to prevent crowds of people. Therefore, the route now runs through the heartland, with two new climbs, the Niella Belbo, after 160 kilometres, and the Colle Di Nava to 230 kilometers. The famous last miles are then run again on the two climbs of Cipressa and Poggio, where for outliers is the last chance to prevent a mass sprint on the Via Roma, and either alone or in a small group in Sanremo arrive.
Sporting predictions fall in this year. No one knows exactly in what Form the potential winning driver out of the Lockdown came out. A Lockdown was in Italy particularly sharp and professional cyclists over the weeks made a Training outside of the own four walls is impossible. There is a lot of pent-up energy, a lot of ambition, a lot of pressure – too much sometimes, like the terrible crash and the serious injury of Fabio Jakobsen at the tour of Poland on Wednesday showed.
among the favorites for the victory in Sanremo, the Colombian Fernando Gaviria, the Slovenian Tadej Pogačar, the Australian Michael Matthews, the Belgian Matthieu Van der Poel and Wout van Aert – and also for the German Team Bora-hansgrohe starting at the end of Slovak Peter Sagan.
Ralph Denk, team Manager of Bora-hansgrohe, left during the week, the new route with the car. "There's a lot that will be different this year," he says. "This begins with the course and with the high temperatures that are to be expected. We will see which riders would cope with that best. I think the race is overall more open than usual, and also more exciting.“ Are approved only six riders per Team, one less than usual. That too will affect the course of the race. "With only six men, we must not so much to poker," says Denk. "Breakaways, you are twenty minutes drive away, as happened at the Milano–Sanremo sometimes, because with six drivers, they get much heavier than a seven."
Date Of Update: 08 August 2020, 02:19
