Giro d’Italia 2013 Stage 19 is a High Mountain stage with summit finish, between Ponte di Legno and Val Martello. The length of the course is 138 kilometers, short but tough. The route also contains epic climbs of Passo Gavia (3618 m) and Passo dello Stelvio (2758 m). Stelvio is this year’s Cima Coppi.

Giro d’Italia 2013 Stage 19 quick info

  • DATE: May 24, 2013, Friday
  • STAGE TYPE: High Mountain with Summit Finish
  • START-FINISH: Ponte di Legno (1176 m) > Val Martello (2051 m)
  • LENGTH OF THE COURSE: 138 km
  • DIFFICULTY:
Giro d'Italia 2013 stage 19 profile
Giro d’Italia 2013 stage 19 profile
Giro d'Italia 2013 stage 19 map
Giro d’Italia 2013 stage 19 map
Giro d'Italia 2013 Stage 19 climb details
Giro d’Italia 2013 Stage 19 climb details

There are 3 main (and very tough) climbs in the stage route:

  1. Passo di Gavia (22.6th km, 2618 m): the epic climb is starting at 6.1st kilometer at Ponte su T. Frigidolfo (1298 m). Riders will gain 1320 meters in 16.5 kilometers (average 8%, max. 16%). The average gradient is 5.3 in first part (2 km), then 8.8% in second part (2 km – 7.750 km – the max. gradient of 16% is in this part). 3rd part between 7.750 – 13.350 km has average gradient of 7.9%, and the last part has average gradient of 8.8%.
  2. Paso dello Stelvio (69.6th km, 2758 m) – Cima Coppi: the Cima Coppi is the highest altitude reached by cyclists during the Giro d’Italia. It was established in 1965, five years after the death of the “campionissimo” (champion of champions) Fausto Coppi. 2013 Giro’ Cima Coppi, the epic climb of Passo dello Stelvio is starting at 48.1st kilometer at Bormio (1205 m). Riders will gain 1553 meters in 21.7 kilometers (average 7.2%, max. 12%).
  3. Val Martello/Martelltal (138th km, 2051 m), Summit finish: starting at 113.9th kilometer at Coldrano (661 m). Riders will gain 1422 meters in 22.3 kilometers (average 6.4%, max. 14%).

Giro d’Italia 2013 Stage 19 start town: Ponte di Legno

Ponte di Legno
Ponte di Legno

Ponte di Legno (Pònt in local camunian dialect) is an Italian comune of 1816 inhabitants in Val Camonica, province of Brescia, in Lombardy.

Passo di Gavia

Passo di Gavia
Passo di Gavia, the summit

Passo di Gavia (Gavia Pass) is a high mountain pass in the Italian Alps. It is the tenth highest paved road in the Alps.

The pass lies in the Lombardy region and divides the province of Sondrio to the north and the province of Brescia to the south. The road over the pass (SS 300) connects Bormio to the northwest with Ponte di Legno to the south and is single track most on its southern section.

Passo di Gavia is often on the route of the Giro d’Italia road bicycle race and is sometimes designated the Cima Coppi, the highest point of the race. On 5 June 1988, the race passed over the Gavia in a snowstorm, making for an epic stage won by Erik Breukink. American Andrew Hampsten, the second-place finisher, became the overall race leader and went on to win the Giro.

Andy Hampsten
Andy Hampsten on Passo di Gavia climb, Giro d’Italia 1988.

Passo dello Stelvio

Passo dello Stelvio
The summit of Passo dello Stelvio

Passo dello Stelvio (The Stelvio Pass) located in Italy, at 2,757 m (9,045 feet) is the highest paved mountain pass in the Eastern Alps, and the second-highest in the Alps, slightly below the Col de l’Iseran (2,770 m, 9,088 feet).

Passo dello Stelvio retains importance for cycling when it is open from June to September. Countless cyclists struggle to get to the highest stretch of road in the Eastern Alps. It is the highest finish of any Grand Tour. The Giro d’Italia often crosses the Stelvio Pass (it was crossed by the Giro for the first time in 1953 when Coppi beat Koblet). The last winner on the pass was Thomas De Gendt in 2012. Every year, the pass is closed to motor vehicles on one day in late August when about 8000 cyclists ride on the Stelvio.

Giro d’Italia 2012 stage 20 finished at the top of Passo dello Stelvio, Belgian Thomas de Gendt won the stage.

Giro d’Italia 2013 Stage 19 finish: Val Martello

Val Martello (Martelltal)
Val Martello (Martelltal)

Val Martello (Martelltal in German) is a valley in the province of Bolzano, which starts in the village of Laces and extends for about 30 km.

The valley surrounded by the Stelvio National Park, ends with the lake Gioveretto, after the lake, the road ends in a large parking lot near the Enzian Gasthof Schönblick and at an altitude of 2051 m. Along the valley of the brook runs Plima, but despite this, the valley is not particularly rich in watercourses.

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