Stage 18: Mori to Polsa, 20.6km individual time trial

This is an uphill time trial which is steepest and twistiest towards the summit. The final 7km is constant climbing at 7-8% gradient after a couple of short, flattish sections mid-climb. That means the pure climbers won’t be at such a disadvantage relative to the time trial specialists, so we will see the gaps between the GC contenders measured in seconds rather than minutes.

That said, it’s the third week of a Giro which has been hard on the riders in terms of both the parcours and the cold, wet weather, so don’t be surprised if a couple of the big names really struggle. The fastest will look to break the 40-minute barrier but this will hurt everybody regardless. We may not see the true impact of this stage on the riders’ legs until the next two days are done, and the standings at the end of this stage will dictate race tactics going forward.

Link: Official website