PREVIEW | Tour of the Alps 2023

Preview. The Tour of the Alps is frequently the main lead-up race towards the Giro d'Italia, as in five stages between the 17th and 21th of April the riders will face several hilly and mountainous days that will warm-up the climbers towards the Giro.

The opening stage will be quite short and have a hilltop finish in Alpbach. The ascent of the Kerschbaumer Sattel will be 5 kilometers long at 10.5% and create serious gaps. Afterwards, the final climb with feature 6.2 kilometers at 4.6% where differences can further be consolidated.

The second day of racing should see more differences. The finale will take place in Ritten, following three similar ascents. 5,1Km at 6.1%, 4.5Km at 7.8% and 6Km at 7.1% before the short explosive ramp into town where the riders will cross the line.

Stage 3 will be the high mountain day. A descent start, it will then see the riders climb Lago di Cei, 9.6 kilometers at 7.6% although it features much tougher gradients throughout, and then the final summit finish at the climb to San Valentino which features 15.2 kilometers at 7.6%.

Stage 4 starts off brutally with 15.7 kilometers at 7.3% at the Passo Sommo where the climbers will have the opportunity to turn the race on it's head. It's another day in the high mountains, however even if the situation remains under control, the Passo Pramadiccio (9.6Km; 6.3%) could still dictate differences before the finale in Predazzo.

The final stage will be quite explosive, with a start in Cavalese with the immediate ascent of the Passo Lavazé which sees 10.3 kilometers at 7.7% average gradient. It should see a very strong group go up the road and could blow the race appart. Most spectacle is expected for the finale in Brunico following the climb of the Mulbach which is 7.8Km at 8.2% but features gradients above 10% for several kilometers.

Prediction Tour of the Alps 2023 overall classification:

*** Tao Geoghegan Hart, Aleksandr Vlasov
** Pavel Sivakov, Thymen Arensman, Santiago Buitrago, Felix Gall
* Geraint Thomas, Jack Haig, Hugh Carthy, Lennard Kämna, Geoffrey Bouchard, Domenico Pozzovivo

Pick: Tao Geoghegan Hart