After the stage 4 mountain time trial shook up the GC standings for the first time, the Giro d'Italia Women continues with another stage where the pink jersey hopefuls will be out to play.
Stage 5 heads into the Dolomites for four categorized climbs and virtually no recovery sections over 146 kilometres with 3,400 metres of elevation gain.
From Longarone the route climbs gradually through the Piave and Boite valleys toward Cortina d’Ampezzo, then tackles the steep Passo Tre Croci (7.8km at 7.5%) in the first 56 kilometres, followed by Passo Sant’Antonio (7.6km at 8.3%) and then twice the ascent to Costalissoio (2.7km at 10%), with a first pass under the finish banner before the second ascent.
The final climb ends with just over 16km remaining, and that run-in is largely downhill, but the trio of climbs crammed into the final 50km guarantees major selection.
The Colle delle Finestre on the penultimate stage represents the critical GC flashpoint of the race but this stage has the potential for fireworks and should give the race even more shape ahead of the Finestre.
So far, the stage 4 time trial has been the only GC difference-maker and while it was an uphill TT, it's a different beast to stacking steep climbs on top of each another. Stage 5, then, should provide a clearer picture of who's really going to be battling for pink over the Finestre.
And the stage perhaps gains even more importance due to the time gaps we saw in the time trial, where Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) won by over a minute. Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ) is still the favourite for this Giro, but she has been left more on the back foot than she would have expected, and may be more eager now to start clawing back time on stage 5.
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Van der Breggen looked imperiously strong in the time trial but question marks will remain over her pink jersey challenge after she lost the Vuelta Femenina on the mighty Angliru at the last GC hurdle. Stage 5 will be an opportunity to start answering those questions about whether she can go all the way this time.
Mountains
Passo Tre Croci (cat. 1, 7.8km at 7.5%), km. 56.1
Passo di Sant’Antonio (cat. 2, 7.6km at 8.3%), km. 92.4
Lyne has been involved in professional cycling for more than 15 years in both news reporting and sports marketing. She founded Podium Insight in 2008, quickly becoming a trusted source for news of the North American professional cycling world. She was the first to successfully use social media to consistently provide timely and live race updates for all fans. She is proud to have covered men's and women's news equally during her tenure at the helm of the site. Her writing has appeared on Cyclingnews and other news sites.
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