2006 Giro d'Italia
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The 2006 Giro d'Italia was the 89th edition of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's
Grand Tours In road bicycle racing, a Grand Tour is one of the three major European professional cycling stage races: Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and Vuelta a España. Collectively they are termed the ''Grand Tours'', and all three races are similar in ...
. It began in the Belgian city of
Seraing Seraing (; wa, Serè) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. The municipality consists of the following districts: Boncelles, Jemeppe-sur-Meuse, Ougrée, and Seraing. With Liège, Herstal, Sai ...
with a
individual time trial An individual time trial (ITT) is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock (in French: ''contre la montre'' – literally "against the watch", in Italian: ''tappa a cronometro'' " stopwatch stage"). There are also track ...
. The race came to a close with a mass-start road stage that stretched from Museo del Ghisallo to
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
. Twenty two teams entered the race that was won by the Italian
Ivan Basso Ivan Basso (born 26 November 1977) is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 1999 and 2015 for seven different teams. Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, was considered among the best mountain riders in ...
of the team. Second and third were the Spain
José Enrique Gutiérrez José Enrique Gutiérrez Cataluña (born 18 June 1974) is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist. His career highlights include second place overall at the 2006 Giro d'Italia, winning a stage of the Vuelta a España and two stages at ...
and Italian
Gilberto Simoni Gilberto Simoni (born 25 August 1971 in Palù di Giovo, Trentino) is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer, most recently for . Simoni is twice winner of the Giro d'Italia cycling race (2001 and 2003 editions). Simoni might have wo ...
. Basso, riding for , won the Giro in dominant fashion. Basso won three individual stages, as well as the team time trial, along with his fellow Team CSC riders, and won the overall classification by more than 9 minutes over the next best rider, the largest margin of victory in a
Grand Tour The Grand Tour was the principally 17th- to early 19th-century custom of a traditional trip through Europe, with Italy as a key destination, undertaken by upper-class young European men of sufficient means and rank (typically accompanied by a tut ...
in the last three years. In the other classifications that the race awarded,
Paolo Bettini Paolo Bettini (born 1 April 1974 in Cecina, Livorno, Tuscany) is an Italian former champion road racing cyclist, and the former coach of the Italian national cycling team. Considered the best classics specialist of his generation, and probably ...
of the team won the points classification, Quick Step-Innergetic rider Juan Manuel Gárate won the mountains classification, and
Paolo Savoldelli Paolo Savoldelli (born 7 May 1973 in Clusone, province of Bergamo) is a former Italian road racing cyclist and winner of the 2002 and 2005 Giro d'Italia. Savoldelli was a climber but known for his fast downhill riding. He is nicknamed ''Il F ...
of the won the combination classification. finished as the winners of the ''Trofeo Fast Team'' classification, ranking each of the twenty-two teams contesting the race by lowest cumulative time. The other team classification, the ''Trofeo Super Team'' classification, where the teams' riders are awarded points for placing within the top twenty in each stage and the points are then totaled for each team was also won by Phonak.


Teams

Twenty-two teams contested the 2006 Giro. Since it was a
UCI ProTour The UCI ProTour was a series of road bicycle races in Europe, Australia and Canada organised by the UCI (International Cycling Union). Created by Hein Verbruggen, former president of the UCI, it comprises a number of 'ProTour' cycling teams, ...
event, the 20 ProTour teams were automatically invited and obligated to send a squad. Race officials also invited two other teams. Each team sent a squad of nine riders, giving the race a 198-man
peloton In a road bicycle race, the peloton (from French, originally meaning 'platoon') is the main group or pack of riders. Riders in a group save energy by riding close ( drafting or slipstreaming) to (particularly behind) other riders. The reducti ...
at its outset. The 22 that competed in the race were:


Race previews and favorites


Route and stages

The 2006 Giro opened, and had its first 4 stages in the South-East of Belgium in the
Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...
region. The Giro organisers chose to locate the opening in this region as a homage to the thousands of Italians who moved to the region following the end of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
in order to find jobs in the coal mines of the area. It is estimated that as many as 300'000 Belgians of Italian origin live in this area. The 2006 Giro commemorated the deaths of 136 Italian miners who died in the 1956 Bois du Cazier mine disaster. The race introduced a team time trial stage upon its arrival in
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. This discipline had been absent from the Giro since edition
1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker runs ...
. It also included of individual time trials, distributed between the prologue and the long time trial at
Pontedera Pontedera (; la, Pons Herae) is an italian comune with a population of 29.270 inhabitants, located in the province of Pisa, Tuscany, central Italy. The town is located 20 km (12 miles) from Pisa and 50 km (31 miles) from Florence. It house ...
. It also featured famous climbs, such as the steep Mortirolo and the
Monte Bondone Monte Bondone is a mountain of Trentino, northern Italy, located west of the provincial capital of Trento. It has an elevation of and includes a ski resort on one side. It is the highest mountain of the Garda Mountains, Garda Prealps and with a ...
. There were plans to visit
Plan de Corones The Kronplatz (Ladin and Italian: ''Plan de Corones'') is a mountain of the Dolomites in South Tyrol, northern Italy, with a summit elevation of above sea level. ''Kronplatz'' is not only the name of the mountain but of the whole holiday region ...
for the first time; however, bad weather prevented the unpaved climb from being used. It instead saw its debut in the Giro d'Italia in
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
.


Race overview


Classification leadership

In the 2006 Giro d'Italia, four different jerseys were awarded. For the
general classification The general classification (or the GC) in road bicycle racing is the category that tracks overall times for riders in multi-stage races. Each stage will have a stage winner, but the overall winner in the GC is the rider who has the fastest cumulat ...
, calculated by adding each cyclist's finishing times on each stage, and allowing time bonuses for the first three finishers on mass start stages, the leader received a pink jersey. This classification is considered the most important of the Giro d'Italia, and the winner is considered the winner of the Giro. Additionally, there was a
points classification The points classification is a secondary award category in road bicycle racing. Points are given for high finishes and, in some cases, for winning sprints at certain places along the route, most often called ''intermediate sprints''. The points cl ...
, which awarded a mauve jersey. In the points classification, cyclists got points for finishing in the top 15 in a stage. The stage win awarded 25 points, second place awarded 20 points, third 16, fourth 14, fifth 12, sixth 10, and one point less per place down the line, to a single point for 15th. In addition, some points could be won in intermediate sprints. There was also a
mountains classification The King of the Mountains (KoM) is an award given to the best climbing specialist in a men's cycling road race; in women's cycle racing A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a femal ...
, which awarded a green jersey. In the mountains classifications, points were won by reaching the top of a mountain before other cyclists. Each climb was categorized, either first, second, or third category, with more points available for the higher-categorized climbs. The highest point in the Giro (called the ''Cima Coppi''), which in 2006 was the Passo di Gavia in stage 20, afforded still more points than the other first-category climbs. The fourth was the combination classification, which awarded a blue jersey. In the combination classification, the top 15 placed riders each day in the general, points, mountains, and 110 Gazzetta classifications earned points, 15 for first and one point less per place down the line, to a single point for 15th. These points were tallied throughout the Giro. There were also two classifications for teams. The first was the Trofeo Fast Team. In this classification, the times of the best three cyclists per team on each stage are added, and the team with the lowest time is leading team. The Trofeo Super Team was a team points classification, with the top 20 placed riders on each stage earning points (20 for first place, 19 for second place and so on, down to a single point for 20th) for their team.


Final standings


General classification


Points classification


Mountains classification


Combination classification


Trofeo Fast Team classification


Trofeo Super Team classification


Minor classifications

Other less well-known classifications, whose leaders did not receive a special jersey, were awarded during the Giro. Other awards included the Combativity classification, which was a compilation of points gained for position on crossing intermediate sprints, mountain passes and stage finishes. Italian
Paolo Bettini Paolo Bettini (born 1 April 1974 in Cecina, Livorno, Tuscany) is an Italian former champion road racing cyclist, and the former coach of the Italian national cycling team. Considered the best classics specialist of his generation, and probably ...
won the Most Combative classification. Bettini also won the 110 Gazzetta classification. The Azzurri d'Italia classification was based on finishing order, but points were awarded only to the top three finishers in each stage.
Ivan Basso Ivan Basso (born 26 November 1977) is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 1999 and 2015 for seven different teams. Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, was considered among the best mountain riders in ...
won the Azzurri d'Italia classification. The ''Trofeo Fuga Piaggio'' classification rewarded riders who took part in a breakaway at the head of the field, each rider in an escape of ten or fewer riders getting one point for each kilometre that the group stayed clear. The classification was won by
Christophe Edaleine Christope Edaleine (born 1 November 1979 in Annonay, Ardèche) is a French former professional road bicycle racer. His riding career ended when did not renew his contract at the end of the 2008 season. In 2012 he directed a mixed team that won ...
. Teams were given penalty points for minor technical infringements. were most successful in avoiding penalties, and so won the Fair Play classification.


References


Footnotes


Citations


External links

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cyclingnews.com
- race reports and news features {{DEFAULTSORT:Giro d'Italia, 2006 2006 UCI ProTour 2006 2006 in Italian sport
2006 Giro d'Italia The 2006 Giro d'Italia was the 89th edition of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It began in the Belgian city of Seraing with a individual time trial. The race came to a close with a mass-start road stage that stretched from ...
May 2006 sports events in Europe