{"id":192739,"date":"2023-05-15T12:36:18","date_gmt":"2023-05-15T12:36:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?p=192739"},"modified":"2023-05-15T12:36:18","modified_gmt":"2023-05-15T12:36:18","slug":"is-the-2023-giro-ditalia-cursed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2023\/05\/15\/is-the-2023-giro-ditalia-cursed\/","title":{"rendered":"Is the 2023 Giro d\u2019Italia Cursed?"},"content":{"rendered":"

There may have been more disastrous Grand Tour weeks than the first week of the 2023 Giro d\u2019Italia, but I cannot recall one. It was surely a fitting climax to the week\u2019s series of calamities when race leader Remco Evenepoel (Soudal\u2013Quick-Step) announced on Sunday, shortly after retaking the maglia rosa<\/em>, that he had tested positive for Covid and would no longer participate in the race.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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A sensitive reader of tea leaves and portents may have already suspected that the Giro was under the curse of a malocchio<\/em>, or evil eye, long before the Dutch rider told reporters<\/a> that he had been suffering from a stuffy nose ahead of the stage 9 time trial, and added: \u201cLet\u2019s touch wood that it\u2019s not a virus. I don\u2019t want to say the [name of the] virus, that would not be good luck. We will see.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the Giro\u2019s bad run of fortune began before the race even kicked off when on the eve of the stage 1 ITT, Jumbo-Visma\u2019s Jan Tratnik and Rudy Molard (Groupama-FDJ) were in accidents while training. Molard was able to start the race but Tratnik was not. And that was just the beginning for Jumbo-Visma. The team then announced<\/a> that two of its riders, Tobias Foss and Robert Gesink, had tested positive for Covid and would be replaced by Jos van Emden and Rohan Dennis. Two days later, the Dutch team had to replace one of its replacements, van Emden who had also come down with Covid. Giulio Ciccone (Trek-Segafredo) and Gino M\u00e4der (Bahrain Victorious) also tested positive and so were also unable to line up for stage 1.<\/p>\n

More bad luck was to come, starting with stage 1. Following the ITT, race organizers put Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates) in the blue King of the Mountains jersey because he had recorded the fastest time on the stage\u2019s only climb, a modest ascent of 2.8 km. He had been timed at 3 min 51 sec, or 12 seconds faster than anyone else. Suspicions were quickly raised in the media, forcing organizers to have another look. And, sure enough, there had been a timing error and organizers took the blue jersey off McNulty\u2019s shoulders and gave it to Tao Geoghegan Hart<\/a> (Ineos Grenadiers) before the start of stage 2.<\/p>\n

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Thank you Remco, see you next year! \ud83d\ude22#Giro<\/a> #GirodItalia<\/a> #Evenepoel<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/MToOVgljqQ<\/a><\/p>\n

— Giro d'Italia (@giroditalia) May 14, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n