Many race director’s of the three Grand Tours want to have a Grand Depart in the United States of America. While many may not see this as possible due to logistics and the long and tiring travels between the US and Europe. But the man currently in charge of the Giro, Mauro Vegni, is hopeful he can bring the race to the States.

“The Giro in the United States could be an opportunity that is closer than people think,” Vegni told VeloNews. “We want to bring the Giro experience to growing European economies, and to other regions, like the United States and East Asia.”

“We are very happy to hear that the Giro is growing year by year in the USA, because it’s a very important market for us,” Vegni continued. “And we are happy to hear that Italy is a country that Americans look to with a lot of interest, for our race, the landscapes, the food, and history, and our growth in USA is a reflection of that.”

He has long said that in two Giro’s time, the 2017 edition marks the 100th running of the race and he wants to do something special. This may be the US Grande Partenza he has always dreamed of. It almost happened with a stage beginning in Washington D.C in 2012, before the start was aborted and moved to Denmark. The change was cuased by a change if mayors in the US and a budget crisis.

“My thoughts are that in a world that is more global, international events, such as the Giro, Tour and other events, they should be able to arrive in these type of countries to promote our sport,” Vegni explained. “The Emirates have visited the Giro, and they liked the race, but they have invested in their own events. Our strategic interests for the Giro now lie in other countries.”

“The Giro in the future should be more and more international. The Giro can serve as an ambassador of Italy in the world,” Vegni said. “We also must not forget the values of our sport, and focus on the athletes. The Giro is a fantastic stage, but the cyclists are the actors. We must also search for the balance between the modern and the traditional.”