Everyone knows the Tour de France, it is of course the biggest event in cycling. But past that… other than cycling enthusiasts few actually know about other races. No doubt residents in places such as California can’t help but hear about local events such as the Tour of California, which will kick off next week, but what about the other events?
Beginning this weekend, and thus overlapping with the Tour of California, is the Giro d’Italia – also known to cycling fans as the Giro. This is actually one of the three grand tours with the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España(Tour of Spain) as being the other one. So why don’t more Americans know it? Part of it is that it just hasn’t gotten the same level of coverage.
And while Versus has long carried the Tour de France, now Universal Sports could make the Giro much more of a household name as it provides 45 hours of live comprehensive coverage of the event, with coverage beginning this Saturday, May 7 at 9:30am ET and continuing to Milan on May 29! The broadcast team consists of Steve Schlanger on play-by-play and Todd Gogulski, former teammate of Lance Armstrong and Greg LeMond, serving as the network’s cycling analyst.
Universal Sports will have daily live coverage of every stage, including a post-race report, and primetime re-airs nightly at 8:00 pm ET. On the two rest days, the network will air the “Giro Race Review” show, featuring highlights of the race so far and an analysis of upcoming challenges.
This should make for an exciting May, where we hope to see the latest in innovative products and get a feel for who might be racing to Paris in July. And with the Tour of California starting just next week, May truly is shaping up to be a month of cycling as well as National Bike to Work Month!
Giro d’Italia Official Website
AMGEN Tour of California Official Website
Universal Sports Official Website for Cycling