A bumper gallery of photos from the Giro d’Italia’s extra-long opening week.
Harry Talbot, Zac Williams, Cor Vos
It’s in the nature of a Grand Tour to mess with the rules of time. With the culmination of stage 9, the Giro d’Italia’s extra-long opening week is finally over.
The Grande Partenza in Bulgaria seems like several weeks ago, as does – mercifully – its disastrous stage 2 crash on rain-slick roads; stage 4’s intra-team drama; the extreme weather – again – on stage 5; yet another mass crash in Naples; the first summit finish on Blockhaus … Enough has happened so far to fill several books, and, it being Italy, countless galleries bursting with picturesque imagery.
This gallery brings together some of the highlights, with photos from Cor Vos, Harry Talbot, and Zac Williams. Just a taste of the Giro so far, and an amuse-bouche of what’s to come.
Hands up who’s excited to start the Giro d’Italia.Giulio Pellizzari was starting his fourth Grand Tour as a genuine contender for the first time.The first stage in Bulgaria was dry and sunny.The first breakaway of the race comprised two experienced attackers in Manuele Tarozzi (Bardiani CSF 7 Saber) and Diego Sevilla (Polti-VisitMalta).The breakaway had a leisurely day out.After such an easy day, it was inevitable that the bunch sprint would present high risk, and sure enough, a mass crash caused disruption for most of the bunch with about 600 metres to go. At first, no one seemed badly injured, but in the days that followed, Matteo Moschetti and Kaden Groves would withdraw as a result.Paul Magnier was unaffected, though, and the young Frenchman soared to his first Grand Tour stage win.The 22-year-old sprinter had the honour of wearing the first pink jersey of the 2026 Giro (pictured on morning of stage 2).
