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Overview of the stages; purple lines represent distances covered in the individual stages, while black dotted lines are the distances covered in transfers between the stages
Giro d'Italia 2011 adalah acara perlumbaan basikal edisi ke-94 Giro d'Italia , salah satu perlumbaan basikal Grand Lawatan. Giro bermula pada 7 Mei dengan pasukan masa percubaan dalam Turin untuk meraikan ulang tahun ke-150 penyatuan Itali, apabila bandar ini didirikan sebagai bandar pertama negeri.[1]
Laluan adalah salah satu yang paling sukar dalam sejarah moden bangsa, dengan kritikan besar bahawa ia adalah terlalu keras untuk satu kaum panjang tiga minggu. Daripada tujuh peringkat yang dikategorikan sebagai gunung yang tinggi, enam mempunyai ketibaan sidang kemuncak, yang diketengahkan oleh tiga peringkat sebelum hari rehat kedua yang berakhir pada Grossglockner di Austria, yang sangat curam Monte Zoncolan, dan puncak yang tinggi dan curam berhampiran [fascia [Lembah]] dalam Gardeccia. Terdapat juga, untuk Giro kelima berturut-turut, satu masa mendaki percubaan, yang satu ini kepada Nevegal. Daripada 18 perlumbaan peringkat permulaan massa, hanya tiga berakhir dengan majoriti padang bersama-sama di depan bangsa.
Pada peringkat ketiga, Templat:Cycling data LEO pelumba Wouter Weylandt terhempas datang ke bawah Passo del bocco, berhampiran bandar Mezzanego, mengalami kecederaan bencana. Walaupun usaha resusitasi besar, dia telah ditubuhkan telah mati di tempat kejadian. Peringkat keempat tidak kompetitif berlumba sebaliknya, ia dijalankan sebagai perarakan berbasikal. Pada hari rehat kedua, Xavier Tondo, seorang ahli daripada Templat:Cycling data MOV, telah terbunuh dalam satu kemalangan di rumahnya. Walaupun dia tidak peserta, kematian dia juga mempunyai kesan ke atas perlumbaan, sebagai rakan sepasukan dan ahli-ahli lain peloton penghormatan kepadanya pada peringkat berikutnya.
Kegemaran keseluruhan kuat Alberto Contador adalah pemenang asal bangsa, dalam apa yang ditubuhkan Giro kejohanan kedua. Margin kemenangan dia di hadapan kedua di tempat Michele Scarponi adalah lebih enam minit. Dia juga memenangi pertandingan mata sebagai finisher tinggi yang paling konsisten, juga dengan rantai yang kuat di atas Scarponi di tempat kedua. Vincenzo Nibali siap podium, manakala Stefano Garzelli dan Roman Kreuziger memenangi dua anugerah jersi.
Pemenang Lima kali Grand Tour Alberto Contador, digambarkan di sini menunggang Tour de France kemudian dalam musim ini, adalah kegemaran keseluruhan kuat.
Manakala Giro mempunyai penunggang peloton banyak ketara, termasuk 6 bekas pemenang Grand Tour, kemungkinan kegemaran adalah sentiasa Alberto Contador pada tahun Templat:Cycling data SBS. 2008 Giro juara, yang telah begitu juga memenangi 2008 Vuelta 1 España dan tiga edisi Tour de France, yang diumumkan pada bulan April 2010 bahawa beliau akan bertanding Giro pada tahun 2011.[6] Walaupun status beliau telah dimasukkan ke dalam keraguan selepas ujian positif bagi clenbuterol di Tour de France 2010,[7] dia telah dibersihkan oleh persekutuan negara pada bulan Februari 2011 dan dapat kembali ke perlumbaan,[8] walaupun kes itu masih pended rayuan terakhir untuk Mahkamah Timbangtara Sukan kemudian pada tahun 2011. Contador merupakan pilihan hangat bagi kemenangan keseluruhan.[9][10][11][12][13] Juara bertahan Giro Ivan Basso memilih untuk tidak kembali, lebih suka memberi tumpuan kepada Tour de France kemudian dalam musim ini. Beliau secara ringkas dianggap menunggang sebagai domestique untuk Vincenzo Nibali, tetapi memilih terhadapnya kerana keadaan fizikal pada masa dan perasaan yang berbuat demikian akan menghormati perlumbaan.[14] Giro 2011 itu, edisi ketiga berturut-turut, dan keempat dalam lima tahun lepas, di mana juara bertahan tidak kembali untuk mempertahankan kejuaraan.
Penyiasatan Mantova kes dadah yang berterusan, yang melibatkan ahli-ahli Templat:Cycling data LAM pasukan, kerana ia telah dikenali pada tahun 2009, mempunyai kesan ke atas perlumbaan. Ia terjejas Templat:Cycling data LAM pasukan itu sendiri, sebagai pengurus mereka Giuseppe Saronni terbabit dalam penyiasatan dan meletak jawatan sebagai pengurus pasukan sejurus sebelum Giro bermula. Beliau telah digantikan oleh bekas pengarah sukan Templat:Cycling data OLORoberto Damiani. Kontinjen mereka untuk Giro khusus tidak termasuk mana-mana rider atau kakitangan yang terbabit dalam penyiasatan. Terkemuka ini pelumba adalah Giro bekas pemenang Damiano Cunego, walaupun Damiani merasakan dia akhirnya akan dibersihkan daripada sebarang salah laku.[22] Sementara BMC Racing Team tidak menurunkan kegemaran keseluruhan, diberikan bahawa manusia atas mereka Cadel Evans memilih untuk memberi tumpuan pada Tour de France, mereka juga terjejas oleh penyiasatan itu, bagi tahun kedua berturut-turut. Hanya kerana mereka mempunyai sebelum Giro 2010, pasukan yang digantung Alessandro Ballan dan Enjoy Santambrogio, ahli-ahli Templat:Cycling data LAM pasukan pada tahun 2009 yang dinamakan dalam penyiasatan.[23] Sekali lagi seperti mereka pada tahun 2010, pasukan diaktifkan semula dua pelumba hanya selepas Giro berakhir.[24]
Hampir keseluruhan tahap rata dan mesra pelari pecut tidak menghentikan tiga pelari pecut terbaik yang boleh dibilang di dunia, Mark Cavendish, Tyler Farrar, dan Alessandro Petacchi, dari semua permulaan. Salah seorang pelari pecut yang dijangka bermula, Farnese Vini-Neri Sottoli Andrea Guardini, bukan sebahagian daripada senarai permulaan. Walaupun pengarah sukannya di Lawatan Berbasikal Presiden Turki telah menjanjikan tempat di Giro jika dia memenangi dua peringkat di acara itu (Guardini memang memenangi dua peringkat di Turki), pasukan itu percaya dia akan dilayan dengan lebih baik terus mengambil bahagian dalam perlumbaan yang lebih kecil.[25] Pelari pecut lain di Giro peloton terutama berasal dari pasukan dan pasukan yang jauh lebih kecil dengan sedikit cita-cita keseluruhan. Quick Step dan Templat:Cycling data RSH mengirim dua pelari pecut—Gerald Ciolek dan Francesco Chicchi untuk pasukan Belgium dan Robbie Hunter dan Robbie McEwen dalam skuad Amerika. Pemain debut Giro Templat:Cycling data VCD ada di antara skuad pelari pecut Slovenia mereka Borut Božič. Pelari pecut Templat:Cycling data MOV ialah Francisco Ventoso, salah satu pemenang paling produktif musim ini. Androni Giocattoli dan Colnago-CSF Inox yang kecil juga menghantar pelari pecut, Roberto Ferrari dan pemenang pentas Giro 2010 Manuel Belletti, masing-masing.[26] Pasukan Templat:Cycling data LEO berhasrat untuk menghantar Daniele Bennati, bekas pemenang pengelasan mata dalam Giro d'Italia yang telah memperoleh kejayaan besar pada kebelakangan ini Tour de la Sarthe. Selepas kemalangan di Tour de Romandie di mana dia mengalami banyak patah tulang dan gangguan paru-paru, dia dipaksa keluar dari Giro. Oleh itu, skuad itu mengalihkan harapan mereka kepada pelumba yang pada asalnya ditetapkan sebagai pemain utama Bennati, pelari pecut Belgia Wouter Weylandt.[27]
Laluan dan tahap
Passo Giau, titik tertinggi yang dicapai di Giro d'Italia 2011
Laluan untuk Giro 2011 dilancarkan di Turin pada 23 Oktober 2010. Laluan itu diakui sebagai agak sukar,[28][29][30] menampilkan 40 pendakian yang dikategorikan di antara 18 peringkat permulaan besar-besaran, tujuh daripadanya adalah penamat puncak. Tujuh belas dari 20 wilayah Itali dikunjungi dalam perlumbaan, ketika perlumbaan 2011 memperingati ulang tahun ke-150 penyatuan Itali.[31] Perhatian segera diberikan kepada tiga tahap sebelum hari rehat kedua, tahap 13, 14, dan 15, masing-masing menampilkan kemuncak puncak dan beberapa pendakian tinggi, di antaranya Grossglockner, Monte Zoncolan , dan Passo Giau, Cima Coppi Giro ini, pendakian tertinggi. Laluan seperti yang diumumkan pada awalnya adalah 3,496 km (2,172 bt) panjangnya, hanya malu 4 km (2.5 bt) panjang maksimum yang dibenarkan di bawah peraturan UCI.[32] Penamat puncak pertama adalah Gunung Etna, yang dihadapi peloton dua kali di tahap 9.[33] Pendakian utama terakhir adalah Colle delle Finestre, yang berjaya kembali setelah kali terakhir tampil di Giro d'Italia 2005.[31] Walaupun terdapat lima peringkat yang dipengelasankan sebagai rata, dan pelari pecut Itali Alessandro Petacchi mendakwa dia melihat sebanyak tujuh potensi pecut,[28] kata sepakat bahawa sebahagian besar laluan memilih pendaki yang paling kuat dengan mengorbankan penunggang lain.
Walaupun laluan itu mendapat kritikan positif,[28] ada juga pendapat kritikal bahawa terlalu sukar. Ini terutama dibandingkan dengan laluan yang sukar, namun tidak sesukar untuk Tour 2011 de France yang diungkapkan beberapa hari sebelumnya.[34]Team Sky sporting director Sean Yates called the route "brutal"[35] dan mengatakan bahawa pesaing Tour de France yang serius tidak akan bersusah payah datang ke perlumbaan kerana begitu sukar. Ini dilihat sebagai petunjuk awal bahawa ketua pasukannya Bradley Wiggins akan melewatkan Giro.[36] Analisis kritikal tambahan menyatakan bahawa laluan itu terlalu sukar, kerana jumlah pendakian menegaknya yang luar biasa (409 km (254 bt) di laluan seperti yang diumumkan awalnya),[30] number of summit finishes[37] dan pemindahan panjang,[32] dan jalan tidak berturap atau 'putih' yang dipaparkan pada tahap 5 dan 20.[38] Pengarah perlumbaan Angelo Zomegnan menolak kritikan itu, dengan mengatakan "Ini adalah Giro yang sukar tetapi Giro harus keras."[39]
Dua peringkat di babak kedua Giro telah mengubah kursus mereka tidak lama sebelum dijalankan. Yang lebih terkenal ialah pentas 14, yang dianggap sebagai debut Monte Crostis di Giro d'Italia. Komisaris dari UCI mewajibkannya dikeluarkan pada malam sebelum pentas 14 dijalankan. Crostis bukan hantaran yang baik, dan pegawai Giro telah menetapkan protokol terperinci di mana kereta berpasukan tidak akan mengikuti perlumbaan di atas atau ke bawah gunung, dan hanya motosikal yang menawarkan perubahan roda yang akan hadir bersama para penunggangnya. Pengurus pasukan menyatakan kebimbangan bahawa mereka tidak akan dapat memenuhi tugas mereka sepenuhnya jika tidak hadir dengan penunggang seperti biasa, dan ini diberikan sebagai dasar keputusan UCI. Mereka berpendapat bahawa penganjur Giro telah cukup memastikan keselamatan penunggang di lapangan, tetapi protokol yang diperlukan tidak melindungi aspek sukan dalam perlumbaan. Oleh itu, Crostis disingkirkan, dan tahapnya dikurangkan panjangnya dari panjang yang dirancang awalnya 210 km (130 bt). Pendakian Tualis kategori kedua ditambahkan ke laluan untuk hari ini untuk mengimbangi kehilangan Crostis. Namun, protes dari penonton yang kecewa dengan penyingkiran bahagian Crostis dari laluan tersebut, termasuk banyak yang telah menawarkan diri untuk membuat kerja-kerja membuat bahagian jalan itu selamat, menyebabkan pembatalan pendakian Tualis.[40] The route was diverted while the stage was in progress to avoid a small village at the foot of the Tualis where protesters had gathered.[41] Oleh itu, jarak sebenar tahap ini, dan juga keseluruhan Giro, tidak diketahui. Peringkat terakhir Giro, percubaan waktu individu di Milan, juga dipendekkan. Kursus ini dipendekkan oleh 5.5 km (3.4 bt) empat hari sebelum pentas berlangsung, kerana pemilihan khas akan berlangsung di Milan pada hari yang sama dengan pentas. Pegawai bandar menjangkakan jumlah pemilih yang tinggi dan tidak mahu pusat bandar diikat oleh perlumbaan sepanjang hari, jadi laluan yang disemak semula bermula di pinggir Milan dan bukannya pusatnya. Masih berakhir, mengikut reka bentuk asalnya, di Duomo di Milano.[42]
Walaupun terdapat kritikan langsung dari penunggang, setelah perlumbaan, bahawa laluan itu terlalu sukar dan berbahaya,[43][44] Zomegnan tetap tegas dalam mempertahankan laluannya.[45]
The Giro began with a team time trial in the city that served as Italy's first federal capital, Turin. The Templat:Cycling data THR squad won this stage, making their rider Marco Pinotti the first wearer of the race leader's pink jersey.[47] That team's focus the next day was not to defend Pinotti's race lead, but to try to deliver their star sprinter Mark Cavendish to the victory, which would have the indirect effect of him overtaking Pinotti for the pink jersey. Cavendish indeed became the new race leader, but after an awkward final sprint it was not he but Italian Alessandro Petacchi who won the day.[48]David Millar then became the third race leader in as many days when he finished with a breakaway group that was 21 seconds the better of the main field in stage 3,[49] though this result was obviously overshadowed by the death of Wouter Weylandt earlier in the stage.
After the procession on day four, the fourth stage to be competitively run featured yet another new race leader. On the dirt roads of Tuscany, which had provided for one of the more spectacular stages in the 2010 Giro d'Italia, Dutch rider Pieter Weening won the stage with an 8-second time gap against the field. That, coupled with the 20-second time bonus for winning the day, gave him the pink jersey.[50] There was some stability in the overall standings at this point, as the race's top riders finished together, or nearly so, in the next three stages.
Stage 9 was the first major mountain stage, featuring two ascents of Mount Etna, including a summit finish. It was on this day that strong overall favorite Alberto Contador first seized control of the race. Just after Androni Giocattoli's José Rujano attacked out of the leading group on the road on the way up to Etna for the last time, Contador did likewise. Rujano struggled mightily to hold Contador's wheel and no one else came close to reaching the pair. Contador won the stage, his first Giro stage win despite having won the Italian Grand Tour in 2008, and immediately attained a minute's advantage in the overall classification.[51] In his five previous Grand Tour wins, Contador had never lost the race lead after taking it, but he had also never taken it so early on in the race. As teams who have riders with a legitimate chance to win a race overall will generally try to avoid defending the lead for too many days, lest they tire their support riders out early and leave their leader vulnerable, there was speculation that Contador may tactically relinquish the jersey. The Spaniard himself hinted that such a move may be in his plans.[52][53] This would be likeliest to happen in the heavily undulating stage 11. The breakaway group for this stage was hard-fought and late-forming, since someone from its number could potentially become the new race leader. While Garmin-Cervélo's Christophe Le Mével, who entered the day third overall and had on two other occasions come within a time bonus of claiming the jersey, made the group, neither he nor anyone in it was destined to take pink. Largely under the impetus of Michele Scarponi's Templat:Cycling data LAM team, the breakaway group was caught before the finish. Contador and the rest of the overall favorites finished at the front of the race, with riders well down in the standings claiming the time bonuses, meaning Contador retained the race leadership after all.[54]
Alberto Contador celebrating his overall victory in Milan. He was later stripped of the title
Contador took the most time against the main field out of any day in stage 13. On this day, which ended at the Grossglockner in Austria, he and Rujano again finished well ahead of the main field. As they approached the finish line, Contador did not attempt to sprint for the win, seemingly content to allow Rujano to take it. Their minute and a half time gap, plus the time bonus for second place, gave Contador a lead of over three minutes in the overall standings. Only in the 2009 Tour de France had he ever held a larger lead.[55] The next two days were extremely difficult high mountain stages, both won by members of the Templat:Cycling data EUS team. Contador finished the best of any rider in the top five overall on both days, and so further padded his advantage.[56][57] Wearing a black armband to memorialize fellow Spanish cyclist Xavier Tondó who, though not a participant in the race, had passed away while it was run, Contador dominantly won the stage 16 uphill individual time trial. This result put him nearly five minutes clear of the next-best rider, the largest such advantage he had ever held in any race.[58] In stage 19, Contador again finished with another rider ahead of the main field. This time it was Astana's Paolo Tiralongo, a former teammate of Contador's. Just as he had with Rujano earlier, Contador appeared to allow his companion a stage win he could have easily taken himself.[59] Contador later commented that the victory, the first of Tiralongo's 12-year career,[60] was meant as a gesture of thanks to the Italian for all the support riding he did for him in 2010 when the two were on the same squad.[61] Although Contador claimed that he was not going to give his strongest effort in the stage 21 individual time trial,[62] the Giro's final stage, his ride was still good enough for third place, extending his winning margin to over six minutes, giving him his sixth and statistically most dominant Grand Tour championship.[63] Contador's two stage wins and numerous top five placings also made him the winner of the points competition, by a substantial margin. Michele Scarponi and Vincenzo Nibali completed the podium, in that order, having targeted one another once it became obvious that Contador's advantage was insurmountable. Nibali held second place on stages 13 and 14, but Scarponi overtook him on Gardeccia, finishing a minute and a half better (only six seconds the lesser of Contador), and never relinquished second place. Stefano Garzelli was in the breakaway on the Gardeccia stage and took maximum points on three of the day's five climbs, and second place points on the other two. It was largely thanks to this performance that he won the mountains classification at the end of the race. Roman Kreuziger, still eligible by a matter of months, won the youth competition with his ride to sixth place overall.
Much like had occurred at the final podium celebrations for the 2009 Tour de France, the wrong national anthem was played for Contador. Race organizers mistakenly played an old Spanish anthem with lyrics favored by former Spanish dictator Francisco Franco. The Spanish national anthem as it should have been played would have been purely instrumental.[73]
Death of Wouter Weylandt
Wouter Weylandt, pictured here earlier in the season riding Gent–Wevelgem, crashed and died near the end of stage 3.
During the descent of the Passo del Bocco in stage 3, Templat:Cycling data LEO rider Wouter Weylandt crashed and suffered catastrophic injury. Race doctor Giovanni Tredici, and the doctor for the Garmin-Cervélo team were in cars very near Weylandt's group on the road, and administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation for approximately 40 minutes.[74] Doctors also gave Weylandt adrenaline and atropine to try to restart his heart, though Tredici stated that resuscitation efforts were rather clearly in vain, and that Weylandt was already dead by the time they got to him. Doctors were never able to revive Weylandt, and he was declared dead on the spot.[75] A short time later, Weylandt's body was airlifted off the descent and taken to a nearby hospital, where the pathologist conducting the autopsy concluded that the Belgian had died immediately upon crashing.[76] Weylandt's death was the first at the Giro in 25 years, and the first at one of cycling's Grand Tours since Fabio Casartelli died during the 1995 Tour de France.[77]
Manuel Antonio Cardoso of Templat:Cycling data RSH had been nearest to Weylandt when he crashed, and stated that Weylandt had touched a small retaining wall on the left side of the road with either his pedal or his handlebars, and was then catapulted across the road to the other side, where he again collided with something. He had looked behind him to ascertain his exact position in the race when he clipped the wall. Teammate Tom Stamsnijder also witnessed the accident, saying "it was a very hard fall." Italian police, conducting an inquest into Weylandt's death, also took an official statement from the Portuguese rider at Team RadioShack's hotel.[78] A memorial was placed at the crash site, where Weylandt's pregnant girlfriend and his mother, along with cyclists, passersby and residents of nearby villages, placed flowers.[79] The Templat:Cycling data LEO team remained in the race for another day at the encouragement of Weylandt's family.[80]David Millar, who had taken the race lead that same day, spent the evening discussing with members of Templat:Cycling data LEO, Weylandt's best friend Tyler Farrar, and his girlfriend and mother how best to pay tribute to the fallen rider.[81]
Race director Angelo Zomegnan said in a post-stage press conference that race officials would respect whatever decision the peloton made regarding the next day's stage.[82] As usually occurs when a rider dies in the midst of a multi-day cycling event, the next day was not competitively raced. Instead, the stage was preceded by a minute's silence, and ridden as a procession in Weylandt's memory. Each of the 23 teams took to the front of the peloton for about 15 minutes, and members of Templat:Cycling data LEO, along with Farrar, were allowed to finish first with their arms around each other. Millar led the rest of the field across the line a few seconds later. No results for the stage were recorded, and it did not count towards the general classification or any of the points competitions. After the stage, instead of any podium presentations, the four jersey classification leaders (Millar, Alessandro Petacchi, Gianluca Brambilla, and Jan Bakelants) appeared on stage with the Templat:Cycling data LEO team to lead another moment of silence.[83] Subsequently, Farrar and the remaining Templat:Cycling data LEO squad all decided to leave the race.[84][85] Farrar later revealed that his inclusion with the Leopard Trek squad in the final moments of the neutralized stage was a decision made solely on their part, one for which he felt extremely grateful.[86]
A moment of silence was also held for Weylandt before stage 11, as his funeral took place the same day.[87][88]Pieter Weening also gave the first pink jersey to be presented to him on the podium to Weylandt's surviving family,[89] and stage 11 winner John Gadret stated that he had had Weylandt in his thoughts as he crossed the line and dedicated his win to him, even though the two were not well acquainted.[54]
Death of Xavier Tondó
On 23 May, during the second rest day of the Giro, Xavier Tondó, the reigning Vuelta a Castilla y León champion and one of the leaders on the season for the Templat:Cycling data MOV, was killed in a freak accident at home while preparing to train with teammates. He was reportedly crushed between his car and a garage door.[90]
Despite not taking part in this edition of the Giro, Tondó had taken part in the 2010 edition and was a popular, well-liked rider. Race leader and eventual winner Alberto Contador, along with many others, rode the stage 16 individual time trial with black armbands. The stage was preceded by a minute of silence. Tondó's teammate Branislau Samoilau posted a time that was provisionally best much of the day and was visibly overcome with emotion when interviewed by assembled media after his ride. Contador, the day's eventual winner, dedicated the victory to Tondó, as the two were acquainted despite never having been teammates.[91]
Five days later, teammate and close friend Vasil Kiryienka rode to victory in a solo effort, and he too dedicated the stage victory to Tondó, pointing skyward as he crossed the finish line.[92] The team had met to consider withdrawing from the race after Tondó's death, but instead the riders unanimously voted to ride on.[93] Kiryienka commented that the squad at the Giro hoped to get a further stage win (as Francisco Ventoso's win had come before Tondó's death) to honor him, while other members of the team grieved with Tondó's family.[94] In the final days of the race, many fans wrote signs memorializing Tondó as they had with Weylandt earlier on.
Aftermath
Angelo Zomegnan had been Giro director for seven years, but he was removed from that position after this race.
Immediately after Weylandt's death, Giro officials announced that they would not issue his dossard number 108 in future editions of the race.[95] His number was a prominent part of signs held by fans on the roadside at not just the Giro but other events later in the season as well, including the Tour of California where his death was part of the reason the first stage of that race was canceled due to safety concerns.[96] Many other races, mostly those held in Weylandt's native Belgium, also began the practice of not issuing the number. The Belgian federation criticized this gesture, saying it would not bring Weylandt back and would only serve to continually remind fans and those in the sport of Weylandt's death. They issued the number for the Belgian national road race championships.[97]
About a month after the race concluded, reports began surfacing which stated that Giro director Angelo Zomegnan was going to be ousted from that position.[98] Though praised for his delicate handling of Weylandt's death, Zomegnan's handling of the teams' protest of and eventual removal of the Monte Crostis from the Giro race route was seen much less approvingly. A further month later, RCS Sport, owners of the race, confirmed that Zomegnan had been removed from his largely autocratic position as race director. He was replaced by RCS general director Michele Acquarone and Mauro Vegni, along with a team of former professional riders. Zomegnan remains as an RCS consultant and director of the 2013 UCI Road World Championships in Florence. Zomegnan had held the position since 2004, beginning with the 2005 Giro d'Italia.[99]
Along with the new organizational team came a certain measure of fan involvement in the direction of the 2012 Giro d'Italia. Fans of the race were able to vote on its official Facebook page for two climbs, from an initial pool of 64, to appear in the race. After several rounds of voting, the Passo dello Stelvio and the Passo del Mortirolo were chosen.[100] They were later announced to be part of the same stage for the 2012 Giro.[101] Fans were also given the opportunity to choose from among three prototypes for the design of the pink jersey in the 2012 Giro.[102] Fans could also participate in a promotion called "Tweet Your Maglia Rosa" where they would submit 140-character or fewer Twitter messages describing what the pink jersey means to them. They were set to be printed on the jersey along with tweets from Ivan Basso, Cadel Evans, Alberto Contador, and Vincenzo Nibali, in the respective riders' native languages. Ten tweets – six to be printed in Italian, two in English, and one each in Spanish and French – were eventually chosen by fan voting.[103]
Michele Scarponi became Giro champion upon Contador's disqualification. He is pictured here during the Nevegal time trial wearing the points classification red jersey in Contador's stead. He inherited that classification victory as well.
The hearing was at last held in November,[107] with a verdict expected in January 2012.[108] This, however, was also subject to a delay.[109] Finally, on 6 February 2012, the court spoke, overturning the Spanish federation's decision to clear Contador and assessing the rider a backdated two-year ban, from the date of his adverse test at the 2010 Tour de France. The backdated ban meant any results obtained from the time of that test to the time the court announced its verdict were to be vacated and awarded in turn to previously second-placed riders. This effectively made Michele Scarponi the new Giro champion and points winner, and it made José Rujano and Vincenzo Nibali into stage winners in this Giro.[110] The decision was reminiscent of that handed down in the Alessandro Petacchi case from the 2007 Giro d'Italia. The court's ruling opinion was that the minute amount of clenbuterol found was probably not caused by a doping regimen, but that strict liability rules meant that Contador had nonetheless violated WADA's World Anti-Doping Code. The court held that the adverse finding itself was never in doubt, but merely how the substance had entered the athlete's body. This was not a matter under which they could exonerate him.[111]
Reaction to the decision, and to the protracted nature of the case itself, was widespread and negative. Five-time Giro winner Eddy Merckx expressed surprise at the result and disappointment that it could further sully the sport's image, saying "It's like someone wants to kill cycling."[112] Since-ousted race director Angelo Zomegnan called the decision to strip the Giro championship "nonsense," noting that Contador was permitted to ride at the time and there were no irregularities of any kind during the race.[113] His successor Michele Acquarone was also upset by the decision, believing that damage had been done to the Giro and noting that RCS Sport would need to commission a new trophy to award to Scarponi.[114]
Scarponi, as well as John Gadret, the rider elevated onto the podium now in third place overall, both expressed sympathy for Contador and the feeling that being awarded these prestigious results in a court of law nearly a year after the race concluded kept them from feeling as good as they would were they attained on the road. Both Scarponi's overall championship and Gadret's podium finish constituted the first such results for either of them in a Grand Tour. Gadret, who had supported Contador's presence in the Giro peloton when the race began, reconsidered his position in hindsight, saying the Spaniard's attendance irrevocably changed the race.[115] Further reactions from other personalities within the sport toward the ruling and the case itself were near universally negative.[116][117][118][119][120][121] WADA celebrated the decision, calling the court "robust and thorough" in its jurisprudence of the World-Anti Doping Code.[119]
Classification leadership
Empat jersi khas Giro yang dipamerkan di Milan sebelum persembahan podium terakhir.
In the 2011 Giro d'Italia, four different jerseys were awarded. For the general classification, 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 was considered the most important of the Giro d'Italia, and the winner was considered the winner of the Giro.[122]
Additionally, there was a points classification, which awarded a red jersey. In the points classification, cyclists got points for finishing in the top 15 in a stage. Unlike in the better known points classification in the Tour de France, the type of stage had no effect on what points were on offer – each stage had the same points available on the same scale. The win earned 25 points, second place earned 20 points, third 16, fourth 14, fifth 12, sixth 10, and one point fewer per place down to a single point for 15th. In addition, points could be won in intermediate sprints.[122]
There was also a mountains classification, the leadership of which was marked by a green jersey. In the mountains classifications, points were won by reaching the top of a climb before other cyclists. Each climb was categorized as either first, second, third, or fourth-category, with more points available for the higher-categorized climbs. The Cima Coppi, the race's highest point of elevation, awarded still more points than the other first-category climbs.[122]
The fourth jersey represented the young rider classification, marked by a white jersey. This was decided the same way as the general classification, but only riders born after 1 January 1986 were eligible.[122]
There were also three classifications for teams. In the Trofeo Fast Team classification, the times of the best three cyclists per team on each stage were added; the leading team was the team with the lowest total time; 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;[122] and the Fair Play classification rewarded those teams that best avoided penalty points for minor technical infringements.
The rows in the following table correspond to the jerseys awarded after that stage was run, and shows to whom each jersey would have been awarded each day had Alberto Contador been removed from the standings as the race was ongoing.
Pengelasan lain yang kurang terkenal, yang pemimpinnya tidak mendapat jersi khas, diberikan semasa Giro. Anugerah ini berdasarkan pada mata yang diperoleh sepanjang tiga minggu lawatan.[122] Setiap peringkat permulaan besar-besaran memiliki satu pecut pertengahan, Traguardo Volante, atau T.V. T.V. memberikan bonus detik untuk pengelasan umum, poin ke arah pengelasan mata biasa, dan juga menunjuk ke arah pengelasan T.V. Anugerah ini dikenali dengan pelbagai nama pada tahun-tahun sebelumnya, dan sebelum ini berdasarkan masa.[122] Ia dimenangi oleh Jan Bakelants dari Templat:Cycling data OLO pasukan.[63]
Anugerah lain termasuk pengelasan Combativity, yang merupakan penyusunan mata yang diperoleh untuk kedudukan di lintasan pecut menengah, hantaran gunung dan penamat panggung.[122] Pemenang pengelasan umum asal Alberto Contador memenangi anugerah ini pada akhir perlumbaan; setelah hilang kelayakannya, ia berjaya menjadi pemenang kategori gunung Stefano Garzelli.[63] Pengelasan Azzurri d'Italia dibuat berdasarkan urutan penamat, tetapi mata hanya diberikan untuk tiga pemenang teratas di setiap peringkat.[122] Ia pada asalnya dimenangi, seperti pengelasan mata yang berkait rapat, oleh Contador, dan diteruskan ke José Rujano ketika keputusan pemain Sepanyol itu dilucutkan.[63] Selain itu, Trofeo Fuga Pinarello memberi penghargaan kepada pelumba yang mengambil bahagian dalam pelarian di kepala padang, setiap pelumba dalam pelarian sepuluh atau kurang pelumba mendapat satu mata untuk setiap kilometer sehingga kumpulan itu tetap jelas.[122]Yaroslav PopovychTemplat:Cycling data RSH pertama dalam pertandingan ini.[63] Pasukan diberi mata penalti untuk pelanggaran teknikal kecil.[122] Enam pasukan berbeza – Liquigas-Cannondale, Androni Giocattoli, Templat:Cycling data THR, Quick Step, BMC Racing Team, dan Templat:Cycling data CSF – dielakkan daripada dikenakan penalti sepanjang perlumbaan, dan turut dikongsi dalam memenangi pengelasan Fair Play.[63]
Mata Kedudukan Dunia
Giro adalah salah satu daripada 27 acara sepanjang musim yang menyumbang mata ke arah Jelajah Dunia UCI 2011. Mata diberikan kepada 20 penyudah teratas secara keseluruhan, dan kepada lima pemenang teratas di setiap peringkat.[123]
^John Wilcockson (2011). "Tough Tour, Too Tough Giro?". VeloNews, The Journal of Competitive Cycling. Boulder, Colorado: Competitor Group, Inc. 40 (1): 19–20. French get it right, but Italians are giving riders a summit overload in 2011Unknown parameter |month= ignored (bantuan)
^Stage 4 was neutralised after Wouter Weylandt's death in the previous day's race. The stage was completed in homage to Weylandt, but did not count towards the general classification or any of the points competitions
