2018 Amy Gillett Cycling Scholarship recipient and British UCI team Wiggle High5 cyclist, Grace Brown, shares her insights on the upcoming race.

The Giro Rosa has a reputation for gruelling terrain and exciting competition, where the top female cyclists in the world battle it out to win the maglia rosa.

This year presents 10 race days in northern Italy, from July 6 to 15. The stages include races against the clock (individual and team time trials), flat courses for the sprinters, and uphill finishes for the climbers.

There are a number of defining stages where the tour is likely to be won or lost. Firstly, the teams who are able to get a good result in the stage 1 team time trial (TTT) will give their General Classification (GC) contenders a time advantage and relieve pressure in the following stages.

There are two important uphill finishes. Firstly stage 6 and then stage 9, which will finish atop the famous Monte Zoncolon; a category 1 climb which rises 1,200m in only 10 km and has pinches as steep as 22%. This will surely see significant time gaps form between the GC riders. The stage 7 uphill individual time trial will also be a decisive day.

Stage 1 Fri July 6th 15.5 km TTT
Stage 2 Sat July 7th 120.4 km hills with flat finish
Stage 3 Sun July 8th 132 km flat
Stage 4 Mon July 9th 109 km flat
Stage 5 Tue July 10th 117.7 km hills
Stage 6 Wed July 11th 114.1 km flat with uphill finish
Stage 7 Thu July 12th 15 km ITT uphill
Stage 8 Fri July 13th 121.6 km flat
Stage 9 Sat July 14th 104.7 km flat with uphill finish
Stage 10 Sun July 15th 120.3 km hilly

 

Riders to watch

Last year's winner Anna van der Breggen (NED) will not be competing to defending her title in this year's race, but her powerhouse team Boels - Dolmans will be hard to beat as they look to back 2016 winner Megan Guarnier (USA). The American finished 4th last year and won the final stage.

Mitchelton-Scott have two strong options in Annemiek Van Vleuten (NED) and Amanda Spratt (AUS), who finished 3rd and 5th respectively in last year’s tour. Van Vleuten is the current time trial world champion and also one of the best climbers in the female peloton. After 2 stage victories at last year’s Giro Rosa, she is a likely favourite for this year.

Spratt has had a number of breakthrough performances in the spring of this year as well as winning Emakumeen Bira in May. Both riders will be looking for their team to produce a good TTT result to bring them into GC contention.

Wiggle High5 rider Elisa Longo Borghini (ITA) came 2nd in last year’s race. While she hasn’t produced her usual top results yet this year, the Italian has the “home soil advantage” and will be looking to turn her season around with a dream victory here. She will be backed by a team of strong time-trialists and climbers to give her the best possible chance this year.

Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (RSA) has produced the most consistent performances of any rider this year, with numerous top-10 finishes in this year’s Classics. She has traditionally performed well in the Giro Rosa and will likely be in contention for the top step this year.

Canyon-SRAM’s Kasia Niewiadoma (POL) has placed in the top-10 for the previous three editions of the Giro Rosa. Although she has not performed at her best during the early races of the season, she is still one to watch.

Australian cyclists

Mitchelton Scott

Amanda Spratt @amandaspratt87 & instagram - GC, climber. Spatt is a punchy climber and will likely attempt a stage win on one of the hilltop finishes.

 

Make sure you’re tuned into @letapeaustralia instagram- my takeover is in full swing... posts and stories coming up over the next few days to give you a little insight into my life and days over here 🤗😊 #Repost @letapeaustralia with @get_repost ・・・ Greetings everyone from sunny Switzerland 🇨🇭... @amandaspratt87 here and welcome to my #instatakeover 😁. Over the next few days I will be sharing posts and stories with you from my days over here in Europe. If you have anything you want to know or see then feel free to post in the comments 👇🏻. This morning was an earlier start than normal as I have a longer climbing endurance ride to get through before I start my travel to the mountains. I’m still out riding now, one more long climb to go then I will check back in 😊 #instagood #takeover #welcome #sunnydays #adventures #mountains #cycling #cyclinglife #trainingday #travelday

A post shared by Amanda Spratt (@amandaspratt87) on

Lucy Kennedy @kennedylucy_  - Climber, time-trialist, domestique. As a neo-pro Kennedy will provide valuable support for the team’s GC riders on the climbs.

Gracie Elvin @gracieelvin & instagram - Domestique, sprint leadout. Elvin will play a support role for GC riders and can provide a strong leadout for teammates Jolien D’hoore or Sarah Roy for potential stage wins.

Sarah Roy @sar_roy & instagram - Domestique, sprinter. Like Elvin, Roy will support GC, but may take an opportunity for a stage win on one of the flatter stages.

Jessica Allen @jessallen1992 - Domestique. Allen has been called up last minute to replace her injured teammate. She will also ride as a strong support for the team's GC contenders.

Wiggle High5

Amy Cure @amycure & instagram - Time-trialist, domestique. As a member of the Australian team pursuit squad on the track, Cure will be valuable in the TTT. She will also be used in the sprint leadout for teammate Kirstin Wild who will be targeting stage wins.

Movistar

Rachel Neylan @rachneylan & instagram - Climber, domestique. Neylan is much more experienced than many of her teammates and is likely to provide valuable leadership and support in the hills.

FDJ

Shara Gillow @sharagillow & instagram - GC, climber. Gillow finished 12th in last years Giro Rosa and will look to improve her result this year.

Lauren Kitchen @lozzkitchen - Domestique, sprinter. Kitchen will mainly play a support role, but may take an opportunity for a stage win.

Ále Chipollini

Chloe Hosking @chloe_hosking & instagram - Sprinter. Hosking is one of the top sprinters in the women’s peloton and will be aiming to win on the flatter finishes.

Canyon // SRAM Racing

Tiffany Cromwell @tiffanycromwell & instagram - Domestique. Cromwell will ride to support GC and may take an opportunity for a stage win.

 

Follow the action

Twitter: @GiroRosaCycling

#GiroRosa #GiroRosa18 #UCIWWT

Video highlights UCI YouTube Channel

Streaming on PMG YouTube Channel (not live)

EuroSport/Foxtel highlights

Cycling terminology

Category # climb - There are 5 categories of climbs, which are defined by steepness and length. The most difficult is Hors catégorie (HC), french for “beyond categorisation”, followed by category 1, with the easiest climb being category 4.

GC - General Classification. This is the overall result from a staged race. GC riders need to be all-rounders, good at climbing as well as time-trialing.

Sprinter - A cyclist who specialises in sprint finishes. A sprinter will focus on taking stage wins on flatter courses.

Sprint leadout - In the lead up to a sprint finish teams will organise in a line,setting a high pace to keep their sprinter at the front. Riders peel off one-by-one to finally launch their sprinter at the perfect distance from the line.

Time-trialist - A cyclist who specialises in individual races against the clock and can sustain high power efforts for a long intervals.

Domestique - A cyclist with general ability across all terrain whose main task is to support teammates by collecting bottles from the car or driving the front of the peloton or chasing breaks where necessary.

Peloton - The main group of cyclists in a race, usually including the GC leader.

Puncheur - a cyclist who specialises in short steep climbs. In a stage race, puncheurs tend to be used to attack and creates breaks or chase down breakaway riders from other teams. They may look for an opportunistic stage win.

Neo-pro - first year professional

Maglia rosa - Pink jersey, worn by the rider who is winning the general classification at the beginning of any given stage

Classics - A series of one-day races during the European spring, mainly in Belgium.