The 1977 Giro d'Italia was the 60th running of the Giro, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in Bacoli, on 20 May, with a 7 km (4.3 mi) prologue and concluded in Milan, on 13 June, with a 122 km (75.8 mi) mass-start stage. A total of 130 riders from thirteen teams entered the 22-stage race, that was won by Belgian Michel Pollentier of the Flandria team. The second and third places were taken by Italians Francesco Moser and Gianbattista Baronchelli, respectively.[1][2][3] Freddy Maertens won 7 of the first 11 stages before abandoning due to a crash on Stage 8B.

1977 Giro d'Italia
Race details
Dates20 May – 12 June 1977
Stages22 + Prologue, including four split stages
Distance3,968 km (2,466 mi)
Winning time107h 27' 16"
Results
Winner  Michel Pollentier (BEL) (Flandria)
  Second  Francesco Moser (ITA) (Sanson)
  Third  Gianbattista Baronchelli (ITA) (Scic)

Points  Francesco Moser (ITA) (Sanson)
Mountains  Faustino Fernández Ovies (ESP) (KAS)
Youth  Mario Beccia (ITA) (Sanson)
Sprints  Wilmo Francioni (ITA) (Magniflex)
  Team Flandria
← 1976
1978 →

Maertens was one of five riders within 1:00 of the lead at the time of his abandonment. This followed his performance of winning 13 stages along with the General Classification at the Vuelta a month earlier.[4]

Moser took the Pink jersey from Maertens in the first week and held it until the high mountains of stage 17 which ended in Cortina d'Ampezzo where Pollentier took a :03 lead by beating Moser by :25. Over the next few stages he built this lead up to about 2:00 before the final time trial where he won the stage by :30 over 2nd place Moser and sealed the Giro victory.

Amongst the other classifications that the race awarded, Sanson's Moser won the points classification, Faustino Fernández Ovies of KAS won the mountains classification, and Sanson's Mario Beccia completed the Giro as the best neo-professional in the general classification, finishing ninth overall. Flandria finished as the winners of the team points classification.

Teams

edit

A total of 14 teams were invited to participate in the 1977 Giro d'Italia. Each team sent a squad of ten riders, so the Giro began with a peloton of 140 cyclists. Out of the 140 riders that started this edition of the Giro d'Italia, a total of 121 riders made it to the finish in Milan.[5]

The teams entering the race were:

  • Selle Royal
  • Teka
  • Vibor
  • Zonca

Pre-race favorites

edit

The starting peloton did include the 1976 winner, Felice Gimondi. Freddy Maertens, Gianbattista Baronchelli, and Gimondi were seen by many news outlets to be the favorites to win the race.[6][7][8][9][10]

Route and stages

edit

The route for the race was revealed on 19 February 1977.[11]

Stage characteristics and winners[5][12]
Stage Date Course Distance Type Winner
P 20 May Bacoli to Monte di Procida 7 km (4 mi)   Individual time trial   Freddy Maertens (BEL)
1 21 May Lago Miseno to Avellino 159 km (99 mi)   Plain stage   Freddy Maertens (BEL)
2a 22 May Avellino to Foggia 118 km (73 mi)   Plain stage   Rik Van Linden (BEL)
2b Foggia to Foggia 65 km (40 mi)   Plain stage   Luciano Borgognoni (ITA)
3 23 May Foggia to Isernia 166 km (103 mi)   Plain stage   Simone Fraccaro (ITA)
4 24 May Isernia to Pescara 228 km (142 mi)   Plain stage   Freddy Maertens (BEL)
5 25 May Pescara to Monteluco di Spoleto 215 km (134 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Mario Beccia (ITA)
6a 26 May Spoleto to Gabicce Mare 185 km (115 mi)   Plain stage   Freddy Maertens (BEL)
6b Gabicce Mare to Gabicce Mare 70 km (43 mi)   Plain stage   Freddy Maertens (BEL)
7 27 May Gabicce Mare to Forlì 163 km (101 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Freddy Maertens (BEL)
8a 28 May Forlì to Circuito del Mugello 103 km (64 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Freddy Maertens (BEL)
8b Circuito del Mugello to Circuito del Mugello 79 km (49 mi)   Plain stage   Marino Basso (ITA)
9 29 May Lucca to Pisa 25 km (16 mi)   Individual time trial   Knut Knudsen (NOR)
10 30 May Pisa to Salsomaggiore Terme 205 km (127 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Giacinto Santambrogio (ITA)
11 31 May Salsomaggiore Terme to Santa Margherita Ligure 198 km (123 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Claudio Bortolotto (ITA)
1 June Rest day
12 2 June Santa Margherita Ligure-San Giacomo di Roburent 160 km (99 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Wilmo Francioni (ITA)
13 3 June Mondovì to Varzi 192 km (119 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Giancarlo Tartoni (ITA)
14 4 June Voghera to Vicenza 247 km (153 mi)   Plain stage   Marc Demeyer (BEL)
15 5 June Vicenza to Trieste 223 km (139 mi)   Plain stage   Ercole Gualazzini (ITA)
16a 6 June Trieste to Gemona del Friuli 107 km (66 mi)   Plain stage   Marc Demeyer (BEL)
16b Gemona del Friuli to Conegliano 116 km (72 mi)   Plain stage   Pierino Gavazzi (ITA)
17 7 June Conegliano to Cortina d'Ampezzo 220 km (137 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Giuseppe Perletto (ITA)
18 8 June Cortina d'Ampezzo to Pinzolo 223 km (139 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Gianbattista Baronchelli (ITA)
19 9 June Pinzolo to San Pellegrino Terme 205 km (127 mi)   Stage with mountain(s)   Renato Laghi (ITA)
20 10 June San Pellegrino Terme to Varese 138 km (86 mi)   Plain stage   Wilmo Francioni (ITA)
21 11 June Binago to Binago 29 km (18 mi)   Individual time trial   Michel Pollentier (BEL)
22 12 June Milan to Milan 122 km (76 mi)   Plain stage   Luciano Borgognoni (ITA)
Total 3,968 km (3,968 km)

Classification leadership

edit
 
The Valparola Pass was the Cima Coppi for the 1977 running of the Giro d'Italia.

There were four main individual classifications contested in the 1977 Giro d'Italia, as well as a team competition. Four of them awarded jerseys to their leaders. The general classification was the most important and was calculated by adding each rider's finishing times on each stage.[13] The rider with the lowest cumulative time was the winner of the general classification and was considered the overall winner of the Giro.[13] The rider leading the classification wore a pink jersey to signify the classification's leadership.[13]

The second classification was the points classification. Riders received points for finishing in the top positions in a stage finish, with first place getting the most points, and lower placings getting successively fewer points.[13] The rider leading this classification wore a purple (or cyclamen) jersey.[13] The mountains classification was the third classification and its leader was denoted by the green jersey. In this ranking, points were won by reaching the summit of a climb ahead of other cyclists. Each climb was ranked as either first, second or third category, with more points available for higher category climbs. Most stages of the race included one or more categorized climbs, in which points were awarded to the riders that reached the summit first. The Cima Coppi, the race's highest point of elevation, awarded more points than the other first category climbs.[13] The Cima Coppi for this Giro was the Valparola Pass. The first rider to cross the Valparola Pass was Spanish rider Faustino Fernández Ovies. The fourth classification, the young rider classification, was decided the same way as the general classification, but exclusive to neo-professional cyclists (in their first three years of professional racing).[13] The leader of the classification wore a white jersey.[14]

The final classification, the team classification, awarded no jersey to its leaders. This was calculated by adding together points earned by each rider on the team during each stage through the intermediate sprints, the categorized climbs, stage finishes, etc. The team with the most points led the classification.[13]

There were other minor classifications within the race, including the Campionato delle Regioni classification. The leader wore a blue jersey with colored vertical stripes ("maglia azzurra con banda tricolore verticale").[15] The Fiat Ritmo classification, which was created in honor Juan Manuel Santisteban who died in stage 1A of 1976 edition.[16] In all stages longer than 131 km (81 mi), there was a banner at that point in the stage to designate a special sprint.[16] The winner of the sprint in each stage received a Fiat 127 in this edition, as opposed to a Fiat 131 in its inaugural year.[16]

Classification leadership by stage
Stage Winner General classification
 
Points classification
 
Mountains classification
 
Young rider classification Team classification
P Freddy Maertens Freddy Maertens Freddy Maertens not awarded José Enrique Cima Flandria
1 Freddy Maertens
2a Rik Van Linden Faustino Fernández Ovies
2b Luciano Borgognoni
3 Simone Fraccaro Francesco Moser
4 Freddy Maertens
5 Mario Beccia Francesco Moser Faustino Fernández Ovies Mario Beccia
6a Freddy Maertens
6b Freddy Maertens
7 Freddy Maertens
8a Freddy Maertens
8b Marino Basso
9 Knut Knudsen Francesco Moser
10 Giacinto Santambrogio
11 Claudio Bortolotto
12 Wilmo Francioni
13 Giancarlo Tartoni
14 Marc Demeyer
15 Ercole Gualazzini
16a Marc Demeyer
16b Pierino Gavazzi
17 Giuseppe Perletto Michel Pollentier
18 Gianbattista Baronchelli
19 Renato Laghi
20 Wilmo Francioni
21 Michel Pollentier
22 Luciano Borgognoni
Final Michel Pollentier Francesco Moser Faustino Fernández Ovies Mario Beccia Flandria

Final standings

edit
Legend
      Denotes the winner of the General classification       Denotes the winner of the Mountains classification
      Denotes the winner of the Points classification

General classification

edit
Final general classification (1–10)[5][17]
Rank Name Team Time
1   Michel Pollentier (BEL)   Flandria 107h 27' 16"
2   Francesco Moser (ITA)   Sanson + 2' 32"
3   Gianbattista Baronchelli (ITA) Scic + 4' 02"
4   Alfio Vandi (ITA) Magniflex + 7' 50"
5   Wladimiro Panizza (ITA) Scic + 7' 56"
6   Ronald De Witte (BEL) Brooklyn + 10' 04"
7   Walter Riccomi (ITA) Scic + 12' 28"
8   Claudio Bortolotto (ITA) Sanson + 13' 41"
9   Mario Beccia (ITA) Sanson + 13' 48"
10   Wilmo Francioni (ITA) Magniflex + 16' 11"

Points classification

edit
Final points classification (1-9)[5][17]
Rider Team Points
1   Francesco Moser (ITA)   Sanson 225
2   Pierino Gavazzi (ITA) Scic 183
3   Luciano Borgognoni (ITA) Scic
4   Michel Pollentier (BEL)   Flandria 153
5   Wilmo Francioni (ITA) Magniflex 143
6   Marc Demeyer (BEL) Flandria 141
7   Enrico Paolini (ITA) Scic 133
8   Gianbattista Baronchelli (ITA) Scic 123
9   Miguel María Lasa (ESP) Teka 105
  Aldo Parecchini (ITA) Brooklyn

Mountains classification

edit
Final mountains classification (1-10)[5][17]
Rider Team Points
1   Faustino Fernández Ovies (ESP)   Kas–Campagnolo 675
2   Ueli Sutter (SUI) Zonca–Santini 490
3   Michel Pollentier (BEL)   Flandria 340
4   Mario Beccia (ITA) Sanson 220
5   Renato Laghi (ITA) Vibor 195
6   Gianbattista Baronchelli (ITA) Scic 175
7   Alfio Vandi (ITA) Magniflex 120
8   Giuseppe Perletto (ITA) Perletto 110
  José-Luis Viejo (ESP) KAS
10   Wladimiro Panizza (ITA) Scic 100

Young rider classification

edit
Final young rider classification (1-5)[5][17]
Rider Team Time
1   Mario Beccia (ITA) Sanson 107h 41' 04"
2   Vittorio Algeri (ITA) G.B.C. + 7' 34"
3   Amilcare Sgalbazzi (ITA) Jolly Ceramica + 11' 27"
4   Bernt Johansson (SWE) Fiorella + 14' 13"
5   Carmelo Barone (ITA) Fiorella + 21' 28"

Campionato delle Regioni classification

edit
Final Campionato delle Regioni classification (1-8)[17]
Rider Team Points
1   Wilmo Francioni (ITA) Magniflex 37
2   Gianfranco Foresti (ITA) Scic 12
3   Giacinto Santambrogio (ITA) Bianchi 10
4   Aldo Parecchini (ITA) Brooklyn
5   Pietro Algeri (ITA) G.B.C. 8
  Claudio Bortolotto (ITA) Sanson
  Marcello Osler (ITA) Brooklyn
8   Bruno Zanoni (ITA) G.B.C. 6

Traguardo Fiat 127 classification

edit
Final Traguardo Fiat 127 classification (1-4)[17]
Rider Team Points
1   Jesús Suárez Cueva (ESP) Teka 33
2   Domingo Perurena (ESP) KAS 26
3   Adriano Pella (ITA) Selle Royal 18
4   Gianbattista Baronchelli (ITA) Scic 3
  Aldo Donadello (ITA) Sanson
  Miguel María Lasa (ESP) Teka
  Wladimiro Panizza (ITA) Scic
  Aldo Parecchini (ITA) Brooklyn
  Alfio Vandi (ITA) Magniflex

Team points classification

edit
Final team points classification (1-10)[17]
Team Points
1 Flandria 11,886
2 Sanson 11,078
3 Scic 7,154
4 Flandria 5,633
5 Jolly Ceramica 4558?
6 Vibor 3443
7 Bianchi 3362
8 Brooklyn 3209
9 Selle Royal 3184
10 KAS 3070

References

edit

Citations

edit
  1. ^ "El vencedor: <<Quise retirarme y ya ven..>>" [The winner: << I wanted to retire and you see .. >>] (in Spanish). El Mundo Deportivo. 13 June 1977. p. 30. Archived from the original on 27 February 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  2. ^ Maurizio Caravella (13 June 1977). "Giro: C'E' Sempre Qualcuno Davanti Ai Nostri" [Tour: There's Someone Always Ahead Of Our] (PDF). Stampa Sera (in Italian). Editrice La Stampa. p. 11. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  3. ^ Maurizio Caravella (13 June 1977). "Milano: nell'ultima "kermesse" ha vinto Borgognoni allo sprint" [Milan: the last "event" has won the sprint Borgognoni] (PDF). La Stampa (in Italian). Editrice La Stampa. p. 17. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  4. ^ "Giro1977". Bike Race Info. 2020.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Bill and Carol McGann. "1977 Giro d'Italia". Bike Race Info. Dog Ear Publishing. Archived from the original on 27 February 2014. Retrieved 2012-08-06.
  6. ^ "Scatta il 60' <<Giro>>" [Snaps the 60th <<Tour>>] (PDF). l'Unità (in Italian). PCI. 20 May 1977. p. 12. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 October 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  7. ^ "Maertens, Baronchelliy Gimondi, Entre Los Favoritos" [Maertens, Baronchelliy Gimondi, Among Favorites] (PDF) (in Spanish). El Mundo Deportivo. 20 May 1977. p. 25. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 March 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  8. ^ "Baronchelli ha un alleato: Gimondi" [Baronchelli has an ally: Gimondi] (PDF). Stampa Sera (in Italian). Editrice La Stampa. 20 May 1977. p. 20. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  9. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). doc.rero.ch. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2020. Retrieved 11 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). doc.rero.ch. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2020. Retrieved 11 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  11. ^ Gino Sala (20 February 1977). "Da Napoli a Milano il Giro d'Italia 1977" [From Naples to Milan the 1977 Tour of Italy] (PDF). l'Unità (in Italian). PCI. p. 14. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 April 2019. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
  12. ^ Maurizio Caravella (20 May 1977). "Il Giro cerca un "vero" campione" [The Giro looking for a "real" sample] (PDF). La Stampa (in Italian). Editrice La Stampa. p. 19. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h Laura Weislo (13 May 2008). "Giro d'Italia classifications demystified". Cycling News. Archived from the original on 8 May 2013. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  14. ^ "1977". Giro d'Italia. La Gazzetta dello Sport. 2017. Archived from the original on 1 July 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  15. ^ "1975". Giro d'Italia. La Gazzetta dello Sport. 2017. Archived from the original on 1 July 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  16. ^ a b c "1976". Giro d'Italia. La Gazzetta dello Sport. 2017. Archived from the original on 1 July 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g "Tutte le classifiche della gara" [All the rankings of the race] (PDF). l'Unità (in Italian). PCI. 13 June 1977. p. 7. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 October 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2012.