Reactions to 2008 Giro route

By Tim Maloney, European Editor

At the presentation of the 2008 Giro D'Italia at the Teatro degli Arcimboldi in Milan, RAI-TV color commentator Davide Cassani described the 2008 Giro d'Italia as "a nervous course in the first stages, for the first half, then in the second part there are hard stages with climb after climb, from Stage 14 to Stage 20, then a final time trial on the last stage to Milano that may decide it all."

World Champion Paolo Bettini said that "The early stages of the Giro look good for sprinters and have the kind of nervous finishes I like. Last year I tried to win a stage with the World Champions jersey but didn't make it so I hope to do that next year, especially the stage in San Vicenzo, near my home."

2000 Giro d'Italia winner Stefano Garzelli explained that "This Giro is clearly divided in two parts; the first part is nervous, while the second part of the Giro is hard, especially the final week, so you have to start well and not use up too much energy in the final to win."

37 year old Gilberto Simoni has two Giro wins under his belt and even as the tough Trentino mountain approaches 40, he will be a contender in 2008. Gibo explained that "This Giro will be a really hard race with all the very tough mountain stages. I like what I see, especially the stage to Alpe di Pampeago, where I won before wearing the Maglia Rosa."

See a complete preview, stage list and map of the 2008 Giro D'Italia here.