technical info

This stage consists of a succession of ascents and descents as the race moves from one valley to another, with as many as 12 climbs to be tackled and practically no flat ground to play with. The first part is entirely uphill, touching the villages of Penna Sant’Andrea, Cesi and Penne all the way to Brittoli and Forca di Penne. The athletes will then climb the most demanding hill of the day at Castel del Monte, at the foot of the Gran Sasso, followed by a descent towards Calascio and Castelvecchio Calvisio. The final descent leads to the outskirts of L’Aquila where the short climb of Acquasanta is a prelude to the final sprint down the straight stretch of Via Crispi.
Last km
After leaving the ss.17 road at -6 to go, the peloton will tackle the climb of Via della Polveriera with gradients of around 5-6% and peaks of 9%. The following descent ends with a sharp turn to the right at 2 km from the finish line. At 1500 m to go, the road rises again. The last km has a gradient of around 7% with a peak of 11% a few hundred metres before the final straight. The latter is a 400 m (7 m wide) uphill road at 7%.