Tadej Pogacar and Geraint Thomas are among the big names set to star in the Giro d’Italia this month. Pogacar is the overwhelming favourite to win on his Giro debut, while Thomas will be looking to pounce should the Slovenian show any signs of weakness in the fight for pink. So how can you watch Stage 1 on Saturday? And when does coverage start? Look no further than this very page.
Let the Giro d’Italia begin! The opening Grand Tour of 2024 gets underway on the outskirts of Turin on Saturday, with all eyes on one man…
It’s to hard to recall a three-week stage race where one rider has been expected to destroy the competition like Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) is being tipped to do in Italy. The Slovenian arrives chasing a Giro-Tour de France double and on the back of another stunning Spring Classics campaign, where he claimed ridiculous solo wins at Strade Bianche and Liege-Bastogne-Liege.
One rider who will be hoping to keep him honest, at least, is Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers). The Welshman was just a time trial away from leaving the Giro draped in pink last year, only to see rival Primoz Roglic – who is focusing on the Tour this year with new team Bora-Hansgrohe – bounce back from a mechanical in supreme fashion to snatch the maglia rosa at the death.
Stage 1 sees the peloton run from Venaria Reale to Torino, with three categorised climbs, each trickier than the last, tasked with spicing up the day’s action.
Eurosport’s Felix Lowe was hard at work pre-Tour and has lots for you to feast your eyes on. Head this way for his maglia rosa guide and ratings (i.e. Everyone v Tadej Pogacar), or in this direction for his guide to the key stages.
Watch Stage 1 of the 2024 Giro d’Italia on Saturday, May 4 from 12:30 UK time on Eurosport 1, while you can watch ad-free on discovery+.
The UK coverage will be bookended by The Breakaway, presented by Orla Chennaoui, who has a string of esteemed guests joining her across the three weeks. Usual suspects Dan Lloyd, Adam Blythe and 12-time stage winner Robbie McEwen will return, with former Jumbo-Visma star Nathan van Hooydonck swooping in for the final week as Blythe resumes his duties on the motorbike in Italy.
And fans of Jonathan Vaughters are in for a treat on Stages 8 and 9, with the outspoken EF Education–EasyPost supremo joining our coverage.
Meanwhile, the charismatic Jens Voigt (Stages 1-9), former road star Daniel Oss (Stages 10-14), two-time winner Alberto Contador (Stage 15) and Blythe (Stages 16-21) will be doing their thing on the back of a motorbike to bring fans closer to the action.
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