2004 Giro d'Italia
Template:Infobox cycling race report The 2004 Giro d'Italia was the 87th edition of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It began in Genoa with a Template:Convert prologue. The race came to a close with a Template:Convert mass-start road stage that stretched from Clusone to Milan.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings">Template:Cite web</ref> Nineteen teams entered the race that was won by the Italian Damiano Cunego of the Template:UCI team code team.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref name="elm stage 20, final standings">Template:Cite news</ref> Second and third were the Ukrainian Serhiy Honchar and Italian Gilberto Simoni.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref name="elm stage 20, final standings"/>
In the race's other classifications, Template:UCI team code rider Fabian Wegmann won the mountains classification, Raffaele Illiano of the Template:UCI team code team won the intergiro classification, and Template:UCI team code rider Alessandro Petacchi won the points classification.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref name="elm stage 20, final standings"/> In addition to the points classification, Petacchi also won the secondary most combative and Azzurri d'Italia classifications.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/> Template:UCI team code finished as the winners of the Trofeo Fast Team classification, ranking each of the nineteen teams contesting the race by lowest cumulative time.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref name="elm stage 20, final standings"/> The other team classification, the Trofeo Super Team classification, where the teams' riders are awarded points for placing within the top twenty in each stage and the points are then totaled for each team was won by Template:UCI team code.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref name="elm stage 20, final standings"/>
Teams
Template:Main list A total of 19 teams were invited to participate in the 2004 Giro d'Italia.<ref name="CN Teams and Participants">Template:Cite web</ref> Each team sent a squad of nine riders, so the Giro began with a peloton of 171 cyclists.<ref name="CN Teams and Participants"/><ref name="LGS Classification">Template:Cite web</ref> Out of the 171 riders that started this edition of the Giro d'Italia, a total of 140 riders made it to the finish in Milan.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/>
The 19 teams that took part in the race were:<ref name="CN Teams and Participants"/>
Route and stages
The route for the 2004 Giro d'Italia was unveiled by race director Angelo Zomegnan on 8 November 2003 in Milan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It contained two time trial events, all of which were individual. The organizers divided the remaining nineteen stages into three categories: flat stages, rolling stages, and mountain stages. Twelve of the stages were declared flat stages. Of the seven stages remaining, three stages were designated rolling stages and three were ranked as mountain stages. In the stages containing categorized climbs, three had summit finishes: stage 3, to Corno alle Scale;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> stage 7, to Montevergine di Mercogliano;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and stage 18, to Bormio 2000.<ref name="CyclingNews Preview">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The organizers chose to include two rest days. When compared to the previous year's race, the race was Template:Convert shorter, contained the same amount of rest days, and the same amount of time trials. In addition, this race opened with a prologue, which the last year's race did not.
Race overview
The 2004 Giro d'Italia began with a Template:Convert prologue around the Italian city of Genoa.<ref name="CN 05 P">Template:Cite web</ref> Bradley McGee won the first leg of the race after besting the second place rider Olaf Pollack by ten seconds.<ref name="CN 05 P"/> The race's first mass-start stage came down to a sprint finish in the city of Alba.<ref name="CN 05 1">Template:Cite web</ref> The stage was won by Italian sprinter Alessandro Petacchi and Pollack managed to take the race lead after earning a twelve-second time bonus by finishing second on the stage.<ref name="CN 05 1"/> Stage 2 saw the race lead switch back to McGee after he finished second to the stage winner Damiano Cunego.<ref name="CN 05 2">Template:Cite web</ref>
Success in stages was limited to eight of the competing teams, three of which achieved multiple stage victories, while two individual riders won multiple stages. The riders that won more than once were Alessandro Petacchi in stages 1,<ref name="CN 05 1"/> 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 15, and 20 and Damiano Cunego in stages 2,<ref name="CN 05 2"/> 7, 16, and 18. Template:UCI team code won nine stages with Petacchi. Template:UCI team code won five stages, four with Cunego and one with Gilberto Simoni in stage 3. Template:UCI team code won two stages, with Pavel Tonkov in stage 17 and Stefano Garzelli in stage 19.
Template:UCI team code, Template:UCI team code, Template:UCI team code, Template:UCI team code, and De Nardi each won one stage at the Giro d'Italia. FDJeux.com won the opening prologue with Bradley McGee.<ref name="CN 05 P"/> Lotto-Domo's Robbie McEwen won stage 4 by out-sprinting the rest of the field for the stage win, as did Acqua & Sapone rider Fred Rodriguez in stage 9. Ceramica Panaria-Margres's Emanuele Sella won the hilly stage 11. De Nardi rider Serhiy Honchar won the stage 13 individual time trial.
Classification leadership
In the 2004 Giro d'Italia, four different jerseys were awarded. For the general classification, calculated by adding each cyclist's finishing times on each stage, and allowing time bonuses for the first three finishers on mass-start stages, the leader received a pink jersey.<ref name="LGS Classification"/> This classification is considered the most important of the Giro d'Italia, and the winner is considered the winner of the Giro.<ref name="demystified">Template:Cite web</ref>
Additionally, there was a points classification, which awarded a mauve jersey.<ref name="LGS Classification"/> In the points classification, cyclists got points for finishing in the top 15 in a stage. The stage win awarded 25 points, second place awarded 20 points, third 16, fourth 14, fifth 12, sixth 10, and one point fewer per place down the line, to a single point for 15th. In addition, points could be won in intermediate sprints.<ref name="demystified" />
There was also a mountains classification, which awarded a green jersey.<ref name="LGS Classification"/> In the mountains classifications, points were won by reaching the top of a mountain before other cyclists. Each climb was categorized as either first, second, or third category, with more points available for the higher-categorized climbs. The highest point in the Giro (called the Cima Coppi), which in 2004 was Passo di Gavia, afforded more points than the other first-category climbs.<ref name="demystified" />
The fourth jersey represented the intergiro classification, marked by a blue jersey.<ref name="LGS Classification"/><ref name="demystified" /> The calculation for the intergiro is similar to that of the general classification, in each stage there is a midway point that the riders pass through a point and where their time is stopped. As the race goes on, their times compiled and the person with the lowest time is the leader of the intergiro classification and wears the blue jersey.<ref name="demystified" />
There were also two classifications for teams. The first was the Trofeo Fast Team. In this classification, the times of the best three cyclists per team on each stage were added; the leading team was the team with the lowest total time. The Trofeo Super Team was a team points classification, with the top 20 placed riders on each stage earning points (20 for first place, 19 for second place and so on, down to a single point for 20th) for their team.<ref name="demystified" />
The rows in the following table correspond to the jerseys awarded after that stage was run.
Final standings
| Legend | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Denotes the winner of the General classification<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 
|
Denotes the winner of the Mountains classification<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
|
Denotes the winner of the Points classification<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 
|
Denotes the winner of the Intergiro classification<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
General classification
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Template:Flagathlete
|
Template:UCI team code | Template:Nowrap |
| 2 | Template:Flagathlete | De Nardi–Piemme Telekom | + 2' 02" |
| 3 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | + 2' 05" |
| 4 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | + 4' 36" |
| 5 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | + 5' 05" |
| 6 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | + 5' 31" |
| 7 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | + 6' 12" |
| 8 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | + 6' 15" |
| 9 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | + 6' 34" |
| 10 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | + 7' 47" |
Points classification
Mountains classification
| Rider | Team | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Template:Flagathlete
|
Template:UCI team code | 56 |
| 2 | Template:Flagathlete
|
Template:UCI team code | 54 |
| 3 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | 36 |
| 4 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | 33 |
| 5 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | 27 |
| 6 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | 20 |
| 7 | Template:Flagathlete
|
Template:UCI team code | 16 |
| 8 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | 15 |
| 9 | Template:Flagathlete | Formaggi Pinzolo Fiavè | 14 |
| 10 | Template:Flagathlete | Template:UCI team code | 13 |
Intergiro classification
Trofeo Fast Team classification
| Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Template:UCI team code | Template:Nowrap |
| 2 | Template:UCI team code | + 19' 15" |
| 3 | Template:UCI team code | + 26' 12" |
| 4 | Template:UCI team code | + 29' 13" |
| 5 | Saunier Duval–Prodir | + 39' 21" |
| 6 | Template:UCI team code | + 43' 02" |
| 7 | Template:UCI team code | + 57' 54" |
| 8 | Template:UCI team code | + 1h 03' 04" |
| 9 | De Nardi–Piemme Telekom | + 1h 20' 18" |
| 10 | Formaggi Pinzolo Fiave | + 2h 04' 05" |
Trofeo Super Team classification
| Team | Points | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Template:UCI team code | 384 |
| 2 | Template:UCI team code | 359 |
| 3 | Template:UCI team code | 339 |
| 4 | Template:UCI team code | 327 |
| 5 | Template:UCI team code | 315 |
| 6 | Template:UCI team code | 301 |
| 7 | Template:UCI team code | 273 |
| 8 | Template:UCI team code | 265 |
| 9 | Template:UCI team code | 250 |
| 10 | De Nardi–Piemme Telekom | 217 |
Minor classifications
Other less well-known classifications, whose leaders did not receive a special jersey, were awarded during the Giro. Other awards included the Combativity classification, which was a compilation of points gained for position on crossing intermediate sprints, mountain passes and stage finishes.<ref name="demystified" /> Italian Alessandro Petacchi won the Most Combative classification.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Azzurri d'Italia classification was based on finishing order, but points were awarded only to the top three finishers in each stage.<ref name="demystified" /> The Azzurri d'Italia classification was also won by Alessandro Petacchi.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Trofeo Fuga Piaggio classification rewarded riders who took part in a breakaway at the head of the field, each rider in an escape of ten or fewer riders getting one point for each kilometre that the group stayed clear.<ref name="demystified" /> The classification was won by Daniele Righi.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Teams were given penalty points for minor technical infringements.<ref name="demystified" /> Template:UCI team code was the most successful in avoiding penalties, and so won the Fair Play classification.<ref name="CyclingNews Stage 20 Recap & Final Standings"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
References
Citations
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Template:2004 in road cycling Template:Giro d'Italia Template:Cycling stage recaps Template:Giro d'Italia general classification winners