Edition 52 of the Tirreno-Adriatico, the race organised by RCS Sport / La Gazzetta dello Sport, running from 8 to 14 March 2017, was presented today in Camaiore. The route, in line with last year’s, features two TT stages, one for teams and one for individuals, two sprint stages, two for finisseurs and a mountain stage with the finish on the Terminillo, where, in 2015, Nairo Quintana won a spectacular stage in the snow, putting the seal on the final triumph in the Corsa dei Due Mari.
 

On Saturday 11 March the Queen stage starts from Montalto di Castro: it features two intermediate GPMs and the final climb of Terminillo (16km with an average gradient of 7.3% and maximum of 12%).

 

The next day is the “Muri Stage” from Rieti to Fermo which initially runs along the Salaria, crossing the areas devastated by two earthquakes in August and October. In the Fermo area, a circuit will present some challenging short and steep climbs – known as ‘muri’ (walls) – before reaching the finish line in the center of Fermo.

 

On the 13th, the Ascoli Piceno-Civitanova Marche is a flat stage suitable for the fastest wheels of the bunch, with a final straight of more than a kilometer on the Civitanova Marche seafront. The race will finish with the classic Individual Time Trial of 10.1km in San Benedetto del Tronto.

 2016 Tirreno-Adriatico NamedSport podium

Camaiore and its Lido will also be the start of the Corsa dei Due Mari for the 2018-2020 triennium. The agreement was announced by Francesco Santini, Responsible for the Management of Relations with Sports Bodies of the City of Camaiore, and Mauro Vegni, RCS Sport Cycling Director.

 

The presentation was attended by representatives of the institutions, stage committees, sponsors and media, together with Paolo Bettini, former World and Olympic Champion and Daniele Bennati (Movistar Team) former stage winner and leader's jersey holder (in Monsummano Terme in 2010) who, in 2017, will race the Corsa dei Due Mari for the 12th time.

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Alessandro Del Dotto, Mayor of Camaiore, said: "The Tirreno-Adriatico is an international showcase for our territory: Camaiore and Versilia are visible all over the world thanks to media coverage. We strongly believe in the opportunities that the Corsa dei Due Mari represents for tourism in terms of promotion and seasonal adjustment. We want Camaiore to be always be the city of cycling."

Mauro Vegni stressed that: "The Tirreno-Adriatico is always one of the most fascinating races on the international scene. Scrolling through the list of starters and the roll of honour of 51 editions, all the great champions are there. Over 160 countries connected across the five continents, with more than 200 Italian and international media present at the event, one million page views on the official site and 2.5 million tweets views during the week of the event are the signals that this race has an audience that only a few races in the world can match. The decision to start the race - in 2018, 2019 and 2020 - from this beautiful area, is the result of the strong and long lasting relationship between the city of Camaiore and an event of such high prestige."

Francesco Santini announced the agreement between Camaiore and the Corsa dei Due Mari for the 2018-2020 triennium: "Given the success of the event, we wanted to take this opportunity to maintain our relationship with RCS Sport. We have won over fierce competition thanks to the quality of our proposal, and the City Council recently approved the agreement for the Big Start of the Tirreno-Adriatico from Camaiore until 2020."

Stefano Allocchio, RCS Sport Race Director said: "The route follows the one proposed in recent years with the initial and final Time Trials, two sprint stages, two stages for finisseurs and an uphill finish that this year returns to the Terminillo. The formula we have proposed has been successful and gives the opportunity to all riders to better express their characteristics and, at the end of the seven stages, to crown a complete athlete at the highest level."

Paolo Bettini said: "This is a complete course where all the riders can compete at their best. As usual this race will have an exceptional roster at its start, these stages will make it intense and emotional every day. Tirreno-Adriatico allows every type of rider to express their characteristics to their best: from the cronomen to the sprinters, and from the finisseurs to the GC guys who will fight hard on the Terminillo climb."

Daniele Bennati said, about his 12th start in 2017: "This is a race that both me and all my fellows pro riders like a lot, because this course allows everyone to compete at their best. I will focus on sprint stages with my new team, Movistar. I really like the final individual time trial too, I arrived second in the past on a very similar course here. I will support my team for the GC victory, working for my team captain who could be Nairo Quintana."