Sports Poets Society

Frenchman Laurent Fignon had endured a series of disappointing seasons after winning the 1983 and 1984 Tours. But he turned up for the 1989 Giro in great form. Procycling looks at a race where everything went right for him Writer William Fotheringham Procycling UK - May 2021 When Laurent Fignon won the 1984 Tour de France, the future of cycling seemed to be set in stone. Fignon and his Renault-Gitane team had dominated that Tour to the extent that he was portrayed on the front page of the Fren ch cycling bible Vélo with the coverline ‘The Ogre’. Bernard Hinault, winner of four yellow jerseys between 1978 and 1982 , finished second , but he was in a different race. It was obvious now: Fignon would dominate cycling for the next few years.  At the end of July 1984, after Fignon had won the Tour by almost 11 minutes from Hinault and picked up mountain stage wins at will, no one would have predicted that he would win only one more three-week Tour , and that it would take him the b...

The Giro is often presented through its epic mountain scenery and iconic climbs. But the  corsa rosa  also has an intimate and important relationship with the cities, towns and urban centres of the  bel paese .  Procycling  looks at the geography, culture and racing history of the 2021 route's population centres  by Barry Ryan Procycling UK - May 2021  Last October, a rider who had just finished the Giro d’Italia entered the terrace of a café on a back street behind the Duomo, perched his bike against the window and ordered a beer. In any other town in Italy, a passer-by would have instantly demanded a selfie or a water bottle, but here, nobody batted an eyelid as the man in the skinsuit took his seat among them. In Milan, they’ve seen it all before. Nowhere has hosted the finish of the Giro as often, but the city that waved the first edition away from Piazzale Loreto in the early hours of May 13, 1909 hasn’t always been as willing to welcome the race...

The Giro is often presented through its epic mountain scenery and iconic climbs. But the corsa rosa also has an intimate and important relationship with the cities, towns and urban centres of the bel paese . Procycling looks at the geography, culture and racing history of the 2021 route's population centres  by Barry Ryan Procycling UK - May 2021  The grande partenza takes place in Turin for the third time and, as on the two previous occasions, the coming of the Giro d’Italia doubles as a commemoration of the unification of Italy. Having already marked the centenary in 1961 and the 150th anniversary in 2011 , the Giro returns to the city that served as Italy’s first capital after it was unified under the House of Savoy in 1861.  Four years later (1865), the seat of government moved on to Florence , but Turin’s grand palaces, sweeping boulevards and elegant porticos still hint at its former status. Even though Rome and Milan are Italy’s political and economic capitals...