The favorite is Tadej Pogacar, needless to say. But the 119th edition of the Giro di Lombardia will see several big names in world cycling at the start. Among others, Remco Evenepoel, Giulio Ciccone, Tom Pidcock, Richard Carapaz, Juan Ayuso, Paul Seixas, Ben O’Connor, Florian Lipowitz and our own Christian Scaroni will try to make life difficult for the world and European champion. It won’t be easy to keep the wheels of the Slovenian who is looking for his fifth consecutive victory which would also put him ahead of Fausto Coppi who has won five in Lombardy but not in a row.

Once upon a time the Giro di Lombardia closed the season. Today not anymore because now we continue to run elsewhere, we always run, perhaps even too much. But “Dead Leaves Tour” remains the last monument of the season and retains all its charm and history intact. This year we start from Como and arrive after 238 km in Bergamo, because this is the tradition that requires the departure and arrival to be reversed every other year, with a route that will follow that of two years ago. Six major climbs are scheduled, starting from Madonna del Ghisallo and then continuing with Roncola, Berbenno, Passo della Crocetta, Zambla Alta and Passo di Ganda.

Departure from Como towards Cantù. We climb Ghisallo as the first asperity, but from the Asso side to descend to Bellagio and reach Lecco along the shore of Lake Como. Once you enter the province of Bergamo, the series of bumps begins which leads to the arrival characterized by a continuous succession of climbs and descents with almost no flat stretches between one and the other. The Roncola is climbed first (Valico di Valpiana, gradients up to 17%). Followed by the climbs of Berbenno, Dossena, Zambla Alta and Passo di Ganda which bring the overall difference in altitude above 4400 m. From Ganda you arrive at Selvino where the classic long descent punctuated by 19 hairpin bends begins. There are therefore 9 km of approach to the city (the only flat ones of the entire finale) and the classic passage of the Upper Town until the arrival. Last kilometers through Bergamo Alta going up to Porta Garibaldi and then (with 200 m of cobblestones) to Largo Colle Aperto. In the first part the slopes are always above 10% (max 12%). Downhill the roadway is wide on a smooth surface. 1800 m from the finish there is a sharp turn with a short narrow passage to pass the Porta Sant’Agostino. After the last kilometre, there is a large bend to the left to join the straight that leads to the finish line.