13/09/2024

Piedmont giant Colle delle Finestre rumoured to appear at courses of both Giro d'Italia and Tour de France next year

Colle delle Finestre stayed in the shadows for a few years only to make a spectacular appearance at the 2024 Tour de l'Avenir. The 18 kilometer climb with unpaved second half was a witness to Pablo Torres' historical raid that was since dubbed the 'best teenage climbing performance'.

Considering this was only a test from ASO to see where the climb stands in current era, this was more than enough to satisfy the course-makers. The decision is clear: The mountain giant in Piedmont must be included in the 2025 Tour de France route.

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This year's Italian opening weekend was apparently well received by the Tour organization and thus the soon return to the Apennines. But it won't be as easy because, the RCS (organiser of Giro d'Italia) also wants to have the famous climb make a return at the Italian Grand Tour after five-year absence.

All this is brought by the local Italian outlet TorinoCronaca, where they believe that we will get to enjoy the brutal Colle delle Finestre twice in a grand tour next season. Most cycling fans will remember Chris Froome's legendary 2018 Giro d'Italia when the Brit launched an all-out offensive on this mountain to recover a 3-minute deficit in the general classification and later win the race thanks to an epic 80-kilometer solo.

Vuelta a Espana

It will be a busy year for the region of Piedmont, as the Vuelta a Espana wants to organise the opening weekend there in 2025.

It was previously announced that the course builders of the Vuelta a Espana were considering an opening weekend in Piedmont. According to the Italian sources; La Stampa and Spaziociclismo, the decision has been made and the Spanish Grand Tour will start either in Turin or Venaria Reale. "We would really like it, because Italy is a cycling country and was also hosting the Tour de France this year. We would love it if the Vuelta came to this area," Vuelta boss Javier Guillén confirmed to the Spanish sports newspaper AS in June.