Climbers, sprinters, TT men and classics hunters: the Tirreno-Adriatico 2023 looks more democratic than ever, ready to give a chance to all types of riders. The event is scheduled to start on Monday 6 March with an individual time trial along the seafront of Lido di Camaiore: 11.5 km with no particular pitfalls, perfect to burn some watts. After 5 km, in the village of Fiumetto, between the beach and the Parco La Versiliana, is the first time check. The riders will then turn around and make their way back to Lido di Camaiore, which will assign the first Maglia Azzurra of this 58th edition of the “Corsa dei Due Mari”.
The second stage is rather long and will take the riders from Camaiore to Follonica for a total of 209 km. Shortly after hitting the road, the riders will climb towards Montemagno for 2.6 km at 4.8%. About 100 kilometres into the race, the bunch will tackle the first KOM of the whole competition, namely Castellina Marittima (a total of 12.3 km at 2.9%). Just before the arrival, the athletes will climb again, this time towards Canneto (4.1 km at 4%) and then, in the final circuit of Follonica to be repeated twice, watch out for the strappo of l’Impostino (1.3 km at 6%), which will be tackled for the last time at 10 km to go, undoubtedly making the sprinters’ legs heavier.
Longer but easier, at least on paper, is the third stage, which will take the peloton from Tuscany to Umbria, from Follonica to Foligno, covering 216 km. The first half of the stage is quite tortuous, with the climb of Roccastrada (5.4 km at 5%) and the KOMs of Passo del Lume Spento (12.4 km at 3.9%) and La Foce (3.4 km at 5.4%) near Chianciano Terme, but the last 100 km are almost entirely flat, making it hard to expect anything other than a bunch sprint.
Speaking of GC, things will start to get rough on Thursday 9 March, with the 219km Greccio-Tortoreto stage, with the peloton making its way through Lazio, Marche and Abruzzo. After the ascent of Castelfranco (5.4km at 4.3%), the bunch will climb towards Amatrice before making its way back to the coast, tackling the climb of Folignano (3.4km at 4.6%) and entering the Tortoreto circuit. After an initial passage under the finish line (4.4km at 4.5%), the riders will tackle a 17.1km circuit to be repeated three times ending at the top of the Tortoreto climb (3.1km at 7%). Explosive riders and climbers will have a chance to test their physical condition.
The following day the riders will set off from Morro d’Oro heading for Le Marche, in what is considered the queen stage of the “Corsa dei Due Mari”, given the uphill finish at Sarnano Sassotetto. The kilometres are 168, none of which are flat. Right from the start various ups and downs will be waiting for the athletes, including the climbs of Notaresco (4.2 km at 3.9%), Bellante (2.5 km at 5.3%), Offida (5.7 km at 4.2%), Rustici (1.8 km at 6.2%) followed by the KOM of San Ginesio (5 km at 3.7%) and Gualdo (4.8 km at 5.5%). However, the race will most likely be decided by the uphill finish at Sarnano Sassotetto (13.1 km at 7.4%), a tough and scenically stunning climb that will undoubtedly dig important gaps and may give us a clear indication of who the final winner might be.
However, the following day’s stage, featuring the so-called muri marchigiani (the Marche walls), will give the brave a chance to overturn the result of the previous day’s uphill finish. From Osimo Stazione to Osimo, 194 breathtaking km are expected, with an endless series of climbs that will undoubtedly break the peloton up pretty quickly. The stage starts with the climbs of Recanati (5.9 km at 4.1%), the wall of Santa Maria del Monte (1.8 km at 8.5%), which counts as KOM, and then Macerata (3.1 km at 5.2%), Treia (3.9 km at 3.8%), Montecassiano (1.3 km at 5.7%) and Montefano (2.9 km at 4.3%), before entering the Osimo circuit, 34.2 km long and to be repeated three times. The ring starts with a 1300-metre stretch at 6.4%, while the last 15 km feature, in succession, the Abbadia climb (2.1 km at 5.7%), the extremely tough Costa del Borgo Wall (2.3 km at 7.7%, but with about 1 km constantly at 15% in the central part) with the last stretch completely on dirt road, and finally the last climb leading to Osimo, 1.8 km long with a 5.7% gradient. Considering that all this will have to be repeated three times, we can bet this stage won’t be short on surprises for us.
As tradition has it, the final stage will be held in San Benedetto del Tronto. No time trial this time, but a road stage probably reserved for the sprinters. During its 154 km, the stage is expected to be quite hectic in the first part, thanks to the climbs of Monteprandone (4.6km at 5%), the KOM of Cossignano (2.7km at 6.7%), Montalto delle Marche (1.4km at 5.6%), Carassai (3.4km at 6, 3%) and Ripatransone (8.5 km at 4.5%), but the final 90 km will be completely flat, with a 14.6 km circuit in San Benedetto del Tronto that the riders will have to tackle five times.
