Giro d'Italia Women explained

Italian: Giro d'Italia Women|italic=no
Current Event:	2024 Giro d'Italia Women
Date:	Late June / early July
Region:	Italy
Nickname:	Giro d'Italia Donne Giro Rosa (2013–2020)
Discipline:	Road
Competition:	UCI Women's World Tour
Type:	Stage race
Organiser:	RCS Sport
Number:	35 (as of 2024)
Website:	https://www.giroditaliawomen.it/

The Italian: Giro d’Italia Women|italic=no is an annual women's cycle stage race around Italy. First held in 1988, the race is currently part of the UCI Women's World Tour, and is currently organised by RCS Sport, the organisers of the men's Giro d'Italia. The race was previously branded as the Giro d'Italia Femminile prior to 2013, the Giro Rosa from 2013 to 2020, and the Giro Donne from 2021 to 2023.

The race has been considered the most prestigious stage race in women's road cycling,^[1] with some teams and media referring to the race as a 'Grand Tour'.^{[2] [3]} However, the race does not meet the UCI definition of such an event.^{[4] [5]} It has generally held over nine or ten days in early July each year, competing for attention with the more famous men's . Organisers also stated that they wished to work with the UCI to move the calendar position of the race, so that the race is not overshadowed by the Tour de France.^[6] The race is owned by the Italian Cycling Federation, with organisation of the race outsourced.^[7]

The rider with the lowest aggregate time is the leader of the general classification and wears the pink jersey. While the general classification gathers the most attention, there are other contests held within the Giro: the points classification for the sprinters, the mountains classification for the climbers, young rider classification for the riders under the age of 23, and the best Italian rider classification. Achieving a stage win also provides prestige, often accomplished by a team's sprint specialist or a rider taking part in a breakaway.

History

The men's Giro d'Italia cycling race was first held in 1909, and is considered the second most important cycling race in the world.^[8] The women's Giro d'Italia was first held in 1988 as the Giro d'Italia Femminile. The first edition in 1988 was won by two-time Tour de France Feminin winner Maria Canins from Italy.^{[9] [10]}

Global Cycling Network notes how "how little we actually know" about early editions of the women's Giro, with no information about stage winners. The race was the second biggest women's race in Italy, behind the long running Trofeo Alfredo Binda-Comune di Cittiglio. In the 1990s, the race was dominated by Italian rider Fabiana Luperini, who won 4 editions of the race between 1995 and 1998, winning 13 stages in the process. Luperini later won the 2008 edition of the race, 10 years after her last victory.^[11]

In the 2000s, the race initially grew to 13 stages in length before falling back to 9 stages. Other big races like Grande Boucle Féminine Internationale and Tour de l'Aude Cycliste Féminin were cancelled due to financial difficulties in 2009 and 2010 respectively, leaving the Giro Donne was the only 'Grand Tour' left in women's cycling after 2010.

In December 2012 it was reported that the company Epinike had withdrawn as Giro Donne organiser, making the 2013 edition uncertain. In April 2013, however, organisers announced they had rebranded the race as the Giro Rosa, taking place over eight days.^[12] It returned to its traditional ten-day length the following year. In 2016, the race became part of the new UCI Women's World Tour, organised by the (UCI).^[13]

In the late 2010s and early 2020s, the race was dominated by Dutch riders, with Annemiek van Vleuten winning four times.^[14] In 2021, the race lost its World Tour status due to the lack of live television coverage during the 2020 edition of the race.^[15] The decision to downgrade to a 2.Pro-level stage race was met with criticism. The race used the Giro d'Italia Donne name in 2021, before returning to Giro Donne in 2022. The race returned to World Tour level in 2022, following promises of live television coverage on Eurosport and Rai Sport.^[16] The prize money was also increased to €250,000, with €50,000 for the winner of the general classification. The organisation of the 2023 edition of the race was criticised, with information about the route and riders not available until the last minute.^[17]

From 2024, the race will be organised by the men's Giro d'Italia organiser RCS Sport on a four-year contract.^[18] The 2024 edition of the race will be rebranded to Giro d'Italia Women.^[19]

Winners

Year^[20]	Distance [km]		First	Second	Third
		8
1989
1990
1991	colspan=5 rowspan=2
1992
1993
1994
1995	976km (606miles)	11
1996	1181.1km (733.9miles)	12
1997	1156.5km (718.6miles)	12
1998	1173.4km (729.1miles)	13
1999	1210km (750miles)	12
2000	1298km (807miles)	13
	1440.5km (895.1miles)	13
	889.2km (552.5miles)	9
	888km (552miles)	9
	852.9km (530miles)	9
	858.3km (533.3miles)	9
	894.2km (555.6miles)	9
	895.3km (556.3miles)	9
2008	808km (502miles)	8
2009	918km (570miles)	9
2010	921.9km (572.8miles)	10
2011	962.1km (597.8miles)	10
2012	961km (597miles)	9
2013	803km (499miles)	8
2014	953km (592miles)	10
2015	913.68km (567.73miles)	10
2016	857.7km (533miles)	10
2017	1008.6km (626.7miles)	10
2018	975.2km (606miles)	10
2019	905.8km (562.8miles)	10
2020	975.8km (606.3miles)	9
2021	1022.74km (635.5miles)	10
2022	1007.2km (625.8miles)	10
2023	928km (577miles)	9
2024	876.7km (544.8miles)	8

Multiple winners

Wins	Rider	Editions
5		1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2008
align=center rowspan=2	4		2015, 2017, 2020, 2021
	2018, 2019, 2022, 2023
align=center rowspan=2	3		2001, 2003, 2005
	2011, 2012, 2014
align=center rowspan=3	2		1999, 2000
	2006, 2007
	2010, 2013

Wins per country

Wins	Country
11
9
3	,
2	,
1	,,,,

Secondary classifications

The Italian: Giro Donne|italic=no awards a number of jerseys for winners of certain classifications – the current competitions that award a jersey are:

• (from 1988 to 2023, in 2012) Points classification, for the rider with the most points as awarded by finishing positions on stages and the first riders to go through intermediate sprints. Recently, the winner wears the Italian: maglia rossa (red jersey).
• (from 1988 to 2023) Mountains classification, for the rider awarded the most points for crossing designated climbs, generally at the peaks of hills and mountains. The winner wears the Italian: maglia azzurra (blue jersey).
• Young rider classification, for the fastest rider under the age of 25 to complete the race. The winner wears the Italian: maglia bianca (white jersey).
• Best Italian rider classification, for the fastest Italian rider to complete the race. The winner used to wear the Italian: maglia azzurra (blue jersey).

In 2006, the young riders classification was not run, instead a sprints competition was won by Olga Slyusareva (RUS) and awarded the blue jersey.

Winners by year

Year	Giro		Points		Mountains		Young		Italian		Team	Notes
1988	1		Petra Rossner		Maria Canins					^[21]
1989	2		Petra Rossner (2)		Roberta Bonanomi
1990	3		Catherine Marsal		Catherine Marsal
1991	colspan=12 rowspan=2
1992
1993	4		Luzia Zberg		Lenka Ilavská
1994	5		Imelda Chiappa		Sigrid Corneo
1995	6		Petra Rossner (3)		Fabiana Luperini
1996	7		Fabiana Luperini		Fabiana Luperini (2)					^[22]
1997	8		Diana Žiliūtė		Fabiana Luperini (3)		Edita Pučinskaitė		Sanson Mimosa	^[23]
1998	9		Anna Wilson		Fabiana Luperini (4)		Cindy Pieters			^[24]
1999	10		Svetlana Bubnenkova				Tetyana Styazhkina			^[25]
2000	11		Svetlana Bubnenkova (2)		Edita Pučinskaitė		Nicole Brändli			^[26]
2001	12		Nicole Brändli		Mari Holden					^[27]
2002	13		Zinaida Stahurskaya		Jolanta Polikevičiūtė
2003	14		Regina Schleicher		Jolanta Polikevičiūtė (2)		Modesta Vžesniauskaitė	^[28]
2004	15		Oenone Wood		Svetlana Bubnenkova		Nicole Cooke		Safi–Pasta Zara Manhattan	^[29]
2005	16		Giorgia Bronzini		Svetlana Bubnenkova (2)		Volha Hayeva	^[30]
2006	17		Susanne Ljungskog		Edita Pučinskaitė (2)			^[31]
2007	18		Marianne Vos		Svetlana Bubnenkova (3)		Tatiana Guderzo			^[32]
2008	19		Ina-Yoko Teutenberg		Fabiana Luperini (5)		Claudia Häusler			^[33]
2009	20		Claudia Häusler		Mara Abbott		Lizzie Armitstead			^[34]
2010	21		Marianne Vos (2)		Emma Pooley		Marianne Vos		Tatiana Guderzo			^[35]
2011	22		Marianne Vos (3)		Marianne Vos		Elena Berlato		Tatiana Guderzo (2)			^[36]
2012	23		Marianne Vos (4)		Emma Pooley (2)		Elisa Longo Borghini		Fabiana Luperini			^[37]
2013	24		Marianne Vos (5)		Mara Abbott (2)		Francesca Cauz		Tatiana Guderzo (3)			^[38]
2014	25		Marianne Vos (6)		Emma Pooley (3)		Pauline Ferrand-Prévot		Elisa Longo Borghini			^[39]
2015	26		Megan Guarnier		Flávia Oliveira		Katarzyna Niewiadoma		Elisa Longo Borghini (2)			^[40]
2016	27		Megan Guarnier (2)		Elisa Longo Borghini		Katarzyna Niewiadoma (2)		Tatiana Guderzo (4)			^[41]
2017	28		Annemiek van Vleuten		Annemiek van Vleuten		Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig		Elisa Longo Borghini (3)			^[42] ^[43]
2018	29		Annemiek van Vleuten (2)		Amanda Spratt		Sofia Bertizzolo		Elisa Longo Borghini (4)			^[44]
2019	30		Annemiek van Vleuten (3)		Annemiek van Vleuten (2)		Juliette Labous		Elisa Longo Borghini (5)
2020	31		Marianne Vos (7)		Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig		Mikayla Harvey		Elisa Longo Borghini (6)
2021	32		Anna van der Breggen		Lucinda Brand		Niamh Fisher-Black		Marta Cavalli			^[45]
2022	33		Annemiek van Vleuten (4)		Kristen Faulkner		Niamh Fisher-Black (2)		Marta Cavalli (2)
2023	34		Annemiek van Vleuten (5)		Annemiek van Vleuten (3)		Gaia Realini		Gaia Realini
2024	35		Lotte Kopecky		Justine Ghekiere		Neve Bradbury
Year	Giro		Points		Mountains		Young		Italian		Team	Notes

Winners by country

Rank	Country	Points	Mountains	Youth	Total
1		13	5	1	19
2		3	9	6	18
3		6	0	1	7
		1	4	2	7
5		2	3	1	6
		2	4	0	6
7		0	3	2	5
8		1	1	2	4
		2	1	1	4
10		2	0	1	3
		1	1	1	3
		0	0	3	3
12		1	0	1	2
		0	1	1	2
		0	0	2	2
15		0	1	0	1
		0	1	0	1
		0	1	0	1
		1	0	0	1

Stage wins

Rank	Rider	Stage wins
1		32
2		18
3		16

See also

• Giro della Toscana Int. Femminile – Memorial Michela Fanini
• Tour de France Femmes - a stage race in France
• La Vuelta Femenina - a stage race in Spain

External links

• (Italian and English)

Notes and References

1. Web site: Olympians warm up for London in women's Giro d'Italia. 27 June 2012. Cycling News.
2. News: Goldman . Tom . 22 July 2022 . After more than 30 years, a multiday women's Tour de France is back . NPR.org . 4 August 2022 . After the Tour de France femmes avec Zwift announced its record $250,000 purse, another women's grand tour event, the Giro d'Italia Donne, matched the Tour's prize money amount..
3. Web site: 18 June 2022 . All info on the 2022 Giro Donne, the first women's Grand Tour of the year for the Movistar Team Movistar Team . 4 August 2022 . .
4. Web site: 1 April 2022 . UCI CYCLING REGULATIONS PART 2 ROAD RACES . 4 August 2022 . . 59 . Elite women world circuit The duration of events ... is limited to 6 days unless an exemption is made by the UCI Management Committee.
5. Web site: Frattini . Kirsten . 16 October 2021 . A closer look reveals the inequity at Tour de France Femmes . 28 February 2022 . cyclingnews.com .
6. Web site: Rogers . Owen . 10 July 2022 . Rome the target for 2023 Giro Donne 'grande partenza' . 23 June 2023 . cyclingweekly.com . Organisers confirm they are working with the UCI to ensure the race does not clash with the men’s Tour de France.
7. Web site: Atkins . Ben . 3 December 2012 . Giro Donne 2013 under threat as race organiser steps down . 23 June 2023 . velonation.com.
8. News: Gregg Seltzer . 26 May 2011 . The History of the Giro d'Italia. . 30 July 2012 . Livestrong.
9. Web site: 14 March 2022 . Giro d'Italia Donne - Past winners . 23 June 2023 . cyclingnews.com .
10. Web site: Price . Matilda . 23 June 2023 . A brief history of the Giro d’Italia Donne . 2024-02-08 . Global Cycling Network . en.
11. Web site: Fabiana Luperini’s five fabulous "Giro Rosa" . 2024-02-08 . www.uci.org . en-gb.
12. Web site: Stokes . Shane . 4 April 2013 . Giro Rosa 2013 announced, race drops to eight days in length . 23 June 2023 . velonation.com.
13. Web site: UCI announces 2016 Women's World Tour . Laura . Weislo . CyclingNews . September 24, 2015 . August 8, 2017.
14. Web site: Hurford . Molly . 2023-07-08 . Results, Highlights and the Winner of the 2023 Giro Donne . 2024-02-08 . Bicycling . en-US.
15. Web site: Frattini . Kirsten . 28 September 2020 . Giro Rosa surprised to lose Women’s WorldTour status . 23 June 2023 . cyclingnews.com .
16. News: Ryan. Dabbs. Giro Donne 2022: Everything you need to know about the 33rd edition. Cycling Weekly. Future plc. 30 June 2022. 30 May 2023. 7 January 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230107225226/https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/racing/giro-rosa-385143. dead.
17. Web site: Frattini . Kirsten . 2023-06-29 . 'It's not good enough' - Lizzie Deignan critical of Giro d'Italia Donne organisation . 2023-06-30 . cyclingnews.com . en.
18. Web site: Frattini . Kirsten . 14 February 2023 . RCS Sport take over organisation of Giro d'Italia Donne and Under 23 Giro . 22 June 2023 . cyclingnews.com .
19. Web site: Ostanek . Daniel . Farrand . Stephen . 2023-10-13 . 2024 Giro Donne becomes Giro d'Italia Women, route presentation delayed . 2023-11-01 . cyclingnews.com . en.
20. Web site: Giro d'Italia Internazionale Femminile Palmarès. 4 March 2016 . girorosa.it.
21. Web site: Statistics . 12 July 2017 . girodonne.it – Web Archive . bot: unknown . https://web.archive.org/web/20050206035836/http://girodonne.it/html/passate_edizioni.html . 6 February 2005 .
22. Web site: Women's Giro d'Italia . 21 July 2017 . Cycling News.
23. Web site: Giro d'Italia Femminile, Cat 2.9.1 . 21 July 2017 . Cycling News.
24. Web site: Stage 12, Conegliano – Vittorio Veneto, 116 kms . 21 July 2017 . Cycling News.
25. Web site: Giro d'Italia Internazionale Femminile, Cat 2.9.1 . 21 July 2017 . Cycling News.
26. Web site: Giro d'Italia Internazionale Femminile, Cat 2.9.1 . 21 July 2017 . Cycling News.
27. Web site: Giro d'Italia Internazionale Femminile, Cat 2.9.1 . 21 July 2017 . Cycling News.
28. Web site: Happy Gilmore . Kristy . Scrymgeour . Cycling News .
29. Web site: Giro Rosa (F) 2004 . 12 July 2017 . Cycling Archives.
30. Web site: Bronzini Triples . 12 July 2017 . Cycling News – Autobus.
31. Web site: Giro Rosa (F) 2006 . 12 July 2017 . Cycling Archives.
32. Web site: Giro Rosa (F) 2007 . 12 July 2017 . Cycling Archives.
33. Web site: Ciclismo, Fabiana Luperini vince il Giro Donne 2008 . 11 July 2017 . Mi-Lorenteggio.
34. Web site: Cervelo do Donne double . 12 July 2009 . 11 July 2017 . Cycling News.
35. Web site: Evans completes Team USA success with final stage win . 11 July 2010 . 11 July 2017 . Cycling News.
36. Web site: Vos victorious in Giro Donne . 10 July 2011 . 11 July 2017 . Cycling News.
37. Web site: Johansson tops Vos in final Giro Donne stage . 7 July 2012 . 11 July 2017 . Cycling News.
38. Web site: Abbott seals second Giro Rosa victory . 7 July 2013 . 11 July 2017 . Cycling News.
39. Web site: Vos secures Giro Rosa title . 13 July 2014 . 11 July 2017 . Cycling News.
40. Web site: Giro Rosa: Van der Breggen wins overall title . 12 July 2015 . 11 July 2017 . Cycling News.
41. Web site: Megan Guarnier Wins The Giro Rosa 2016 . 10 July 2016 . 11 July 2017 . Giro Rosa – Official Website.
42. Web site: The Giro Rosa Goes To Anna Van Der Breggen . 9 July 2017 . 11 July 2017 . Giro Rosa – Official Website.
43. Web site: Van der Breggen is your 2017 Giro Rosa winner; teammate Guarnier wins the final stage . 9 July 2017 . 12 July 2017 . Cycling Tips – Ella.
44. Web site: STAGE AND FINAL VICTORY FOR AN IMPRESSIVE ANNEMIEK VAN VLEUTEN. Giro d'Italia Femminile. WordPress. 15 July 2018. 15 July 2018.
45. Web site: Anna van der Breggen wins 2021 Giro d'Italia Donne. Lukas. Knöfler. CyclingNews. 11 July 2021. 11 July 2021.