Giro d'Italia 2011: Stage 4 Preview

Genova Quarto dei Mille – Livorno

San Remo-style finish

The route mainly follows the coast as it heads to Livorno, but bumps inland to climb the Passo del Bracco. This offers a chance for breakaways to get clear, plus the pan-flat costal roads after it are great to build up an advantage. The flip side is that when the sprinters' teams decide to chase, the breakaway and its media caravan will be all too visible. Those in pursuit are likely to prevail but the climb to Montenero provides the sprinters' teams with one final test. This Poggio-like climb won't finish the sprinters off but they'll be chasing hard along the coast, which will blunt finishing speeds.