TNT Sports
Giro Donne 2023 – Opening stage cancelled midway through due to torrential rain
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Published 30/06/2023 at 15:00 GMT+1
Torrential rain forced the cancellation of the 4.4km individual time trial on Stage 1 at the Giro Donne. Annemiek van Vleuten was among the riders to set a time in miserable conditions in Chianciano Term, but organisers eventually pulled the stage from the programme as the rain continued to hammer down. Stream the 2023 Giro Donne live and on-demand on discovery+ and eurosport.com.
'The road is almost like a river' – Torrential rain hits opening time trial
Video credit: TNT Sports
The opening stage of the 2023 Giro Donne was cancelled midway through due to torrential rain.
A forecast of apocalyptic conditions in Siena forced organisers to bring the start time forward for Friday's 4.4km individual time trial, with defending champion Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar) setting an early target of 5:42” as the rain began to hammer down.
Soon, seven riders were within a second at the top of the standings, with Letizia Paternoster (Trek-Segafredo) judged to have set a marginally quicker 5’42” than Van Vleuten to take the top spot. But the weather got progressively worse and after a series of stoppages, the stage was eventually called off.
When the stage was first paused due to the weather, defending champion Van Vleuten had just set the fastest time. Chloe Dygert (Canyon//SRAM Racing) was second in 5’43” after a crash cost the American some time.
Following a thunderstorm the race then re-started, and Marianne Vos (Team Jumbo-Visma) was the latest to post 5’42” as she moved into second place. As the rain surged, Paternoster set a new fastest time of 5’42” which gave her the slimmest of leads over Van Vleuten and Vos.
However, the stage was then paused again due to the latest torrential downpour. It was not re-started for a second time.
The time gaps set by those who managed to take to the course will not count towards rest of the race, so efforts to gain some vital seconds despite the weather were in vain, and perhaps particularly frustrating for those who crashed in their efforts.
Saturday's stage is 102.1km from Bagno a Ripoli to Marradi and features a Cat.2 climb with an average gradient of 4.5%, the Passo Della Colla 16.1km towards the end. Before then, the route starts off relatively flat and will end with a descent before a flat finish.
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Stream the 2023 Giro Donne and Tour de France live and on-demand on discovery+ and eurosport.co.uk
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