The 111th edition of Milan-San Remo will take place on Saturday, August 8, 2020. Originally penned for March 21, it was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Typically, the Italian one-day race signals the start of the Spring Classics campaign and is the first of the five prestigious 'Monuments' on the calendar. Known as La Classicissima di Primavera - and also simply 'La Classicissima' or 'La Primavera' - the race has come to symbolise the turning of winter to spring, although for 2020, it's the metaphorical 'winter' break that we see coming to an end as riders emerge from coronavirus lockdown and an enforced racing hiatus.
After leaving Milan, the route usually runs south and crests the Passo del Turchino before heading along the Ligurian coast from Genoa. However, after the mayors of a dozen coastal towns along the Italian Riviera refused to close down their roads, the route was adjusted inland, adding the climbs of the Niella Belbo and four-kilometre Colle di Nava, before rejoining the classic route at Imperia. The longest race of the calendar is now the longest of its 111 editions and sits at 305km.
Milan-San Remo is characterised by the late ascent of the Poggio and the subsequent drop down to the finishing straight, setting up a battle between the attacking puncheurs and the sprinters in a dramatic climax that often justifies the relative inaction of the previous six hours.
The 2019 Milan-San Remo was won by Julian Alaphilippe, who attacked on the Poggio to draw a select group of 10 riders clear before picking them off in the sprint.
