The Giro d'Italia is an annual multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in Italy, while also starting in, or passing through, other countries. The first race was organized in 1909 to increase sales of the newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport, and the race is still run by a subsidiary of that paper's owner. The race has been held annually since its first edition in 1909, except during the two world wars. As the Giro gained prominence and popularity the race was lengthened, and the peloton expanded from primarily Italian participation to riders from all over the world. The Giro is a UCI World Tour event, which means that the teams that compete in the race are mostly UCI WorldTeams, with some additional teams invited as 'wild cards'.
The Giro Donne is an annual women's cycle stage race around Italy. First held in 1988, the race is currently part of the UCI Women's World Tour, and is currently organised by Starlight / PMG Sport. The race was previously branded as the Giro d'Italia Femminile prior to 2013, and the Giro Rosa from 2013 to 2020.
The general classification in the Giro d'Italia is the most important classification of the Giro d'Italia, which determines who is the overall winner. It is therefore considered more important than secondary classifications as the points classification or the mountains classification.
The 1977 Giro d'Italia was the 60th running of the Giro, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in Bacoli, on 20 May, with a 7 km (4.3 mi) prologue and concluded in Milan, on 13 June, with a 122 km (75.8 mi) mass-start stage. A total of 130 riders from thirteen teams entered the 22-stage race, that was won by Belgian Michel Pollentier of the Flandria team. The second and third places were taken by Italians Francesco Moser and Gianbattista Baronchelli, respectively. Freddy Maertens won 7 of the first 11 stages before abandoning due to a crash on Stage 8B.
The 1982 Giro d'Italia was the 65th running of the Giro. It started in Brescia, on 13 May, with a 16 km (9.9 mi) team time trial and concluded in Turin, on 6 June, with a 42.5 km (26.4 mi) individual time trial. A total of 162 riders from eighteen teams entered the 22-stage race, that was won by Frenchman Bernard Hinault of the Renault–Elf team. The second and third places were taken by Swede Tommy Prim and Italian Silvano Contini, respectively.
The 1975 Giro d'Italia was the 58th running of the Giro, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in Milan, on 17 May, with a set of split stages and concluded with a summit finish to the Passo dello Stelvio, on 7 June, with another split stage, consisting of an individual time trial and a mass-start stage. A total of 90 riders from nine teams entered the 22-stage race, that was won by Italian Fausto Bertoglio of the Jolly Ceramica team. The second and third places were taken by Spaniard Francisco Galdós and Italian Felice Gimondi, respectively.
The 1976 Giro d'Italia was the 59th running of the Giro, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in Catania, on 21 May, with a set of split stages and concluded in Milan, on 12 June, with another split stage, consisting of an individual time trial and a mass-start stage. A total of 120 riders from twelve teams entered the 22-stage race, that was won by Italian Felice Gimondi of the Bianchi-Campagnolo team. The second and third places were taken by Belgian Johan De Muynck and Italian Fausto Bertoglio, respectively.
The 1978 Giro d'Italia was the 61st running of the Giro, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in Saint-Vincent, on 7 May, with a 2 km (1.2 mi) prologue and concluded in Milan, on 28 May, with a 220 km (136.7 mi) mass-start stage. A total of 130 riders from thirteen teams entered the 20-stage race, that was won by Belgian Johan de Muynck of the Bianchi team. The second and third places were taken by Italians Gianbattista Baronchelli and Francesco Moser, respectively. As of the beginning of the 2021 cycling season this was the last time a Belgian rider won a Grand Tour.
Since the first Giro d'Italia in 1909, there have been 2,074 stages. This number includes half-stages, prologues, and a small number of stages cancelled mid-race or immediately before the start. This number is up to date after the 2023 Giro. Since 1931, the race leader following each stage has been awarded the pink jersey.
The 2009 Giro d'Italia Femminile, or Giro Donne, was the 20th Giro d'Italia Femminile, one of the premier events of the women's road cycling calendar. It was held over nine stages from 3–12 July 2009, starting in Scarperia and finishing in Grumo Nevano. It was won by Claudia Häusler of Garmin–Cervélo.
The 2010 Giro d'Italia Femminile or 2010 Giro Donne was the 21st running of the Giro d'Italia Femminile, one of the premier events of the women's road cycling calendar. It was held over ten stages from 2–11 July 2010, starting in Muggia and finishing in Monza. It was won by Mara Abbott of USA National Team, the first American ever to win the Giro Donne.
The 2011 Giro d'Italia Femminile, or Giro Donne, was the 22nd running of the Giro d'Italia Femminile. It was held over ten stages from 1 to 10 July 2012, starting in Rome and finishing with an individual time trial in San Francesco al Campo near Turin.
The 2016 Giro d'Italia was the 99th edition of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tour races. The Giro started in Apeldoorn on 6 May with a 9.8 km (6 mi) individual time trial, followed by two other stages in the Netherlands, both between Nijmegen and Arnhem. After a rest day, there were 18 further stages to reach the finish on 29 May. These stages were principally in Italy, although two stages partly took place in France.
The 2017 Giro d'Italia Femminile, or 2017 Giro Rosa, was the 28th running of the Giro d'Italia Femminile, the only remaining women's Grand Tour. It was held between 30 June and 9 July 2017 as the most prestigious stage race of both the 2017 UCI Women's World Tour and the women's calendar.
The Giro Donne has been won three times by a racer who led the general classification on the first stage and held the lead all the way to finish. Catherine Marsal was the first to accomplish this achievement in the 1990 Giro, with Fabiana Luperini and Nicole Brändli doing the same in 1996 and 2005 respectively.
The 29th running of the women's Giro d'Italia, or Giro Rosa, was held from 6 to 15 July 2018. Raced over ten stages, it is considered the most prestigious stage race of the women's calendar. It was the 14th event of the 2018 UCI Women's World Tour. Two-time winner Anna van der Breggen was the defending champion. However she elected not to defend her title, choosing instead to focus on preparing for a bid to win her first title at the Road World Championships.
The 2019 Giro d'Italia was a three-week Grand Tour cycling stage race organised by RCS Sport that took place mainly in Italy, between 11 May and 2 June 2019. The race was the 102nd edition of the Giro d'Italia and was the first Grand Tour of the 2019 cycling season. The race started with an individual time trial in Bologna, and finished with another time-trial in Verona. The race was won by Richard Carapaz, who became the first Ecuadorian rider to win the Giro d'Italia. Italian Vincenzo Nibali finished 2nd, with Slovenian rider Primož Roglič in 3rd place. Carapaz also became the second South American rider to win the Giro, after Nairo Quintana in 2014.
The 30th women's Giro d'Italia, or Giro Rosa, was held from 5 to 14 July 2019. Raced over ten stages, it was considered the most prestigious stage race of the women's calendar. The defending champion, Annemiek van Vleuten, won the race.
The 31st women's Giro d'Italia, or Giro Rosa, was held from 11 to 19 September 2020. It is considered the most prestigious stage race of the women's calendar and of the 2020 UCI Women's World Tour. The race was originally scheduled from 26 June to 5 July, but was postponed to mid-September due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy and reduced to 9 stages rather than the originally planned 10.
The 2021 Giro d'Italia Donne was the 32nd edition of the Giro d'Italia Femminile women's road cycling stage race. The race started on 2 July and finished on 9 July and, as the longest and one of the most prestigious races on the women's calendar, included ten stages covering over 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) across northern Italy.
