RCS Sport has announced that the Giro d’Italia will have a foreign start in 2022, while Milano-Torino will shift to March and take place between Tirreno-Adriatico and Milan-San Remo.
The location of the Grande Partenza has yet to be announced, but RCS Sport has announced that the 2022 Giro will begin on Friday, May 6 to create an extra rest day to facilitate the transfer to Italy. “The 2022 Corsa Rosa will begin on Friday 6 May and observe an additional rest day, for a total of 3 in the race, given the 105th edition’s Grande Partenza from abroad,” RCS Sport said.
Speaking to Cyclingnews ahead of this year’s Giro, race director Mauro Vegni explained that RCS Sport had plans for several foreign starts in the coming years that had been put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“There were foreign starts planned and there still are, but they’re on standby,” Vegni said. “For next year, we’ll see what’s happening by October and whether the vaccine is having an effect. Let’s hope so.”
The Giro’s last foreign start was in 2018, when the race began in Israel, and the race had also set out from the Netherlands, Denmark and Ireland during the preceding decade.
In 2022, all three Grand Tours are set to have foreign starts, with the Tour de France starting from Copenhagen and the Vuelta a España setting out from Utrecht.
RCS Sport also announced a revision to its usual slate of spring races for 2022, with Milano-Torino moving to its original March slot where it will now serve as a prelude to Milan-San Remo.
The spring series of races begins with Strade Bianche on March 5, followed by Tirreno-Adriatico (March 7-13), Milano-Torino (March 16) and Milan-San Remo (March 19). The Giro di Sicilia, meanwhile, will take place from April 12-15 and serve as a warm-up for the Giro d’Italia. Gran Piemonte will remain in the Autumn on October 6, two days before Il Lombardia.
This year's edition of Milano-Torino takes place on Wednesday, with Gran Piemonte following on Thursday and then Il Lombardia on October 9.