Tour of the Alps

The Tour of the Alps is an annual professional cycling stage race in Italy and Austria. First held in 1962, it was named Giro del Trentino (English: Tour of Trentino) until 2016, and run over four stages in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol region of Italy. In 2015, the race merged with the nearby one-day race Trofeo Melinda, and the 2015 edition was called the Giro del Trentino Melinda.[1]

Giro del Trentino
Race details
DateMid-to-Late April
RegionTyrol–South Tyrol–Trentino, Austria and Italy
English nameTour of Trentino
Local name(s)Giro del Trentino (in Italian)
DisciplineRoad
CompetitionUCI Europe Tour
TypeStage race
Web sitetourofthealps.eu
History
First edition1962 (1962)
Editions43 (as of 2019)
First winner Enzo Moser (ITA)
Most wins Damiano Cunego (ITA) (3 wins)
Most recent Pavel Sivakov (RUS)

In 2017, the event was renamed Tour of the Alps,[2] as it addresses the entire Euroregion of Tyrol–South Tyrol–Trentino, formed by three different regional authorities in two countries: the Austrian state of Tyrol and the Italian autonomous provinces of South Tyrol and Trentino. It should not be confused with the similarly named Giro al Sas di Trento, an annual road running competition in the city of Trento.[3]

Since its rebranding, the race is run mid-to-late April over five stages, as a 2.HC event of the UCI Europe Tour, the level beneath the UCI World Tour. The race will become part of the new UCI ProSeries in 2020.

The Tour of the Alps, typically featuring short and mountainous stages, is considered a last preparation race for the key contenders of the Giro d'Italia, which starts two weeks after the Tour of the Alps finishes. Ten winners of the Giro del Trentino have also won the Giro d'Italia, all of them Italians: Francesco Moser, Giuseppe Saronni, Franco Chioccioli, Gianni Bugno, Gilberto Simoni, Paolo Savoldelli, Damiano Cunego, Vincenzo Nibali, Ivan Basso and Michele Scarponi. Damiano Cunego holds the race record with three overall wins.[4]

History

The first edition of the race was held in 1962. It consisted of a single stage that started and finished in Trento. It was won by Enzo Moser. After a second edition in 1963, the third edition was not held until 1979. There were two unofficial races, in 1977 and 1978 but they remain disputed and usually not treated as official Giro del Trentino races.[5] The 1986 edition of the race was unusual in that there was no individual prize awarded. It was instead a team competition called the Coppa Italia and the first place went to Carrera–Inoxpran. One of the stages of the 1995 Giro del Trentino went to Innsbruck in neighbouring Austria, and stages to and from Lienz in Austria have remained a regular feature of the race since that time. In 2012, the race included a team time trial for the first time, which constituted the first stage of the race.[6] The team time-trial was retained for the 2013 edition.

List of winners

Year Country Rider Team
1962  Italy Enzo Moser San Pellegrino
1963  Italy Guido De Rosso Molteni
1964-
1979
No race
1979  Norway Knut Knudsen Bianchi-Faema
1980  Italy Francesco Moser Sanson
1981  Italy Roberto Visentini Sammontana
1982  Italy Giuseppe Saronni Del Tongo
1983  Italy Francesco Moser Gis Gelati
1984  Italy Franco Chioccioli Murella-Rossin
1985  Austria Harald Maier Gis Gelati
1986  Italy Team edition Carrera–Inoxpran
1987  Italy Claudio Corti Supermercati Brianzoli
1988   Switzerland Urs Zimmerman Carrera Jeans–Vagabond
1989  Italy Mauro Santaromita Pepsi Cola-Alba Cucine
1990  Italy Gianni Bugno Chateau d'Ax–Salotti
1991  Venezuela Leonardo Sierra Selle Italia-Magniarredo
1992  Italy Claudio Chiappucci Carrera Jeans–Vagabond
1993  Italy Maurizio Fondriest Lampre-Polti
1994  Italy Moreno Argentin Gewiss–Ballan
1995   Switzerland Heinz Imboden Refin
1996  Italy Wladimir Belli Panaria-Vinavil
1997  France Luc Leblanc Polti
1998  Italy Paolo Savoldelli Saeco Macchine per Caffè
1999  Italy Paolo Savoldelli Saeco Macchine per Caffè–Cannondale
2000  Italy Simone Borgheresi Mercatone Uno–Albacom
2001  Italy Francesco Casagrande Fassa Bortolo
2002  Italy Francesco Casagrande Fassa Bortolo
2003  Italy Gilberto Simoni Saeco Macchine per Caffè
2004  Italy Damiano Cunego Saeco Macchine per Caffè
2005  Mexico Julio Alberto Pérez Ceramica Panaria–Navigare
2006  Italy Damiano Cunego Lampre–Fondital
2007  Italy Damiano Cunego Lampre–Fondital
2008  Italy Vincenzo Nibali Liquigas
2009  Italy Ivan Basso Liquigas
2010  Kazakhstan Alexander Vinokourov Astana
2011  Italy Michele Scarponi Lampre–ISD
2012  Italy Domenico Pozzovivo Colnago–CSF Bardiani
2013  Italy Vincenzo Nibali Astana
2014  Australia Cadel Evans BMC Racing Team
2015  Australia Richie Porte Team Sky
2016  Spain Mikel Landa Team Sky
2017  Great Britain Geraint Thomas Team Sky
2018  France Thibaut Pinot Groupama–FDJ
2019  Russia Pavel Sivakov Team Sky

Repeat winners

Wins Rider Editions
3 Damiano Cunego (ITA)2004, 2006, 2007
2 Francesco Moser (ITA)1980, 1983
 Paolo Savoldelli (ITA)1998, 1999
 Francesco Casagrande (ITA)2001, 2002
 Vincenzo Nibali (ITA)2008, 2013

Wins per nation

Wins Country
30
 Italy
2
 Australia
 France
  Switzerland
1
 Kazakhstan
 Mexico
 Norway
 Austria
 Spain
 United Kingdom
 Russia
 Venezuela

References

  1. "CyclingQuotes.com Trofeo Melinda and Giro del Trentino to merge". cyclingquotes.com.
  2. "Il Giro del Trentino diventa Tour of the Alps". trentinocorrierealpi.gelocal.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on 6 December 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  3. Un balzo nel passato Archived 2011-07-22 at the Wayback Machine (in Italian). Giro al Sas. Retrieved on 2010-11-03.
  4. "31st Giro del Trentino - 2.1". autobus.cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  5. "Storia del Giro del Trentino" (in Italian).
  6. Atkins, Ben (April 14, 2012). "Danilo Di Luca motivated for the Giro del Trentino". velonation.com.
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