Giro Sub-23: A fan shows the shame of the ‘grupetta’ of the Giro Sub-23: they climb the Stelvio clinging to the car

2023-06-15 12:17:58

The tricks of the ‘grupetta’ and the implausible stories of cycling have been forgotten since the races are broadcast from kilometer 0 and there are fans with mobile phones ready to record anything that happens. However, there are always exceptions and this Wednesday there was one in the queen stage of the Girino, the Giro d’Italia U-23, in its fourth stage that ended in the Stelvio.

There is no doubt that the mythical pass, 20.4 kilometers long with an average slope of 7.4% from Bormio, is a great difficulty for cyclists, but these youngsters have gone a step further. In a day of 120 kilometers and with the only difficulty being mountainous at the end, up to twenty-four riders were disqualified by the organization of the Giro d’Italia for climbing a stretch of the Stelvio while clinging to team cars and motorcycles.

In addition, they do it in an undisguised way, without worrying that someone is recording them. It is true that there were not many people in the ditches, but one of the few who was watching the race did not hesitate to record the scene: cyclists attached to the car and climbing the hard slopes of the Stelvio without pedaling at a speed that only the greats they can reach.

????SCANDAL AT THE NEXTGEN GIRO: 24 RIDERS DISQUALIFIED FOR HOLDING ONTO VEHICLES ON THE STELVIO. (Source TuttobiciWeb) pic.twitter.com/dXVedmVcjB

— Tour de Dope ™ (@triviumcolombia) June 15, 2023

There are several who, seeing the fan recording, let go and start hitting the pedals to try to hide it. In total, there were twenty-four disqualified, many of whom arrived before other cyclists who chose to suffer in the saddle. Most of them were Italians in a race in which this time Laboral Kutxa has not participated.

The stage was won by the 21-year-old Dane Johannes Staune-Mittet, from the Jumbo-Visma subsidiary and the new leader of the race that concludes this Sunday.