Paris-Nice vs. Tirreno-Adriatico
Lack of big summit finish in the Race of Two Seas sends climbers to the Race to the Sun
For the first time this season, there will be two WorldTour stage races running concurrently, as Paris-Nice (March 10-17) in France overlaps with Tirreno-Adriatico (March 13-19) in Italy. This year, the climbers, especially the Spanish-speaking ones, have opted for Paris-Nice, with its fewer time trial kilometres and one big summit finish on the penultimate stage.
Gone from the Race of the Two Seas in Italy is any mountain top finish, no Terminillo, Sarnano Sassotetto or Cittareale. Instead, two stages end with uphill finishes: Stage 2’s 5.9-km, 4.5 percent ascent to Pomerance, and Stage 5’s 2.8-km, 8.8 percent clamber to Recanati. For the fourth year in a row, the race begins with a team time trial in Lido di Camaiore. An individual time trial caps off the race in San Benedetto del Tronto, the traditional end point.
The 54th Tirreno-Adriatico has therefore drawn Geraint Thomas, Tom Dumoulin and recent UAE Tour winner Primož Roglič in search of the trident trophy, along with Thibaut Pinot, Adam Yates and Mikel Landa, who returns to competition after breaking his collarbone in his first race of the year. For a course that lacks flat road stages, the field of sprinters is pretty good: Peter Sagan, Elia Viviani and Fernando Gaviria are among the fast men.
The race can be viewed on FloBikes.
Paris-Nice starts on Sunday with the first of three sprinters’ stages. These days, as miserable as the weather might make them, will be appreciated by Alexander Kristoff, Caleb Ewan, Sam Bennett, Dylan Groenewegen, Sonny Colbrelli and André Greipel, now plying his trade with Pro Continental unit Arkéa Samsic.
The GC fellows will be looking more towards the race’s latter half, starting with a 25-km chrono on Stage 5. Stage 7 is the queen stage with a summit finish on 15.3-km, 7.2 percent Col de Turini, a Cat. 1 ascent coming right before the final climb.
The next day is the traditional very lumpy finale in Nice, the riders faced with six Cat. 1 and 2 climbs over 110-km.
Vying for the Paris-Nice crown is the reigning champ Marc Soler (Spain/Movistar) and his Colombian teammate Nairo Quintana. Vuelta a España winner Simon Yates, Sky’s Colombian duo of Egan Bernal and Ivan Sosa and Romain Bardet.
Astana has several hands to play, with Angel Lopez, Jon and Gorka Izagirre and LL Sanchez. All four have won stage races this season. Hugo Houle will be in their corner.
