Giro d'Italia: Stage 1 time trial start times

Image 1 of 5

The 101st Giro d'Italia is set to get underway on Friday in Israel with a 9.7-kilometre individual time trial that winds through the streets of Jerusalem. Fabio Sabatini (Quick-Step Floors) will be the first rider to roll down the start ramp at 13:50 local time (CET +1).

While the Italian will be the first rider in the 'hot seat' if he can hold off his minute man, the rider most likely to set the benchmark for the GC contenders is BMC Racing's Rohan Dennis, the Australian time trial champion and winner of the Tirreno-Adriatico and Abu Dhabi Tour time trials this season. He sets off at 14:31.

Sprinters like Elia Viviani (Quick-Step Floors), who sets off at 16:02, will want to put in a big effort to have a chance at pulling on the maglia rosa in the subsequent sprint-friendly stages before the race heads to Sicily.

Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) is one of the first GC contenders to start at 16:15, with teammate Esteban Chaves taking off 22 minutes later. Chris Froome (Team Sky) is fifth to last at 16:41.

Defending Giro d'Italia champion and world time trial champion Tom Dumoulin (Sunweb) will be last down the ramp, chasing former time trial world champion Tony Martin (Katusha-Alpecin).

The weather forecast calls for partly cloudy skies and mild temperatures for the early starters, but a chance of rain later in the afternoon could make the technical course tricky for the last men off.

Click here to subscribe to the Cyclingnews podcast.

2018 Giro d'Italia stage 1 start order