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By Barry Boyce, CyclingRevealed Historian
GdI April 28- May 18, 1939 |
3,007 Km |
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Finishers: 54 |
Average Speed: 34.150 km/h |
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"Valetti Battle Bartali" an Epic Duel!!!
The 1939 Giro d'Italia was the 27th edition of Italy’s Grand Tour.
Italy’s political chaos was looming large, and the turmoil of World War 2 was rapidly approaching. The organizers of the 1939 Giro d'Italia promoted a diminished race. Prize money was reduced, and participation was almost entirely an Italian start list.
The 1939 Giro would be remembered as an epic duel between Gino Bartali and Giovanni Valetti.
Teams:
The eight trade teams entered the Giro were:
- Bianchi
- Frejus
- Ganna
- Gloria
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- Lygie
- Legnano
- Olympia
- Team Belgium
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Each trade team was composed of six to eight riders.
There were seven teams from special Groups, which entered five to eight riders each:
- U.C. Modenese (Groups)
- S.S. Genova 1913 (Groups)
- Il Littoriale (Groups)
- U.S. Azzini (Groups)
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- La Voce di Mantova (Groups)
- Dopolavoro di Novi (Groups)
- S.C. Vigor (Groups)
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Race Summary:
Stage 6b: Defending Champion Giovanni Valetti took early control of the race on stage 6b, the 14 km individual time trial up the famed Monte Terminillo. Valetti beat rival Gino Bartali by 28 seconds and moved into 4th place in the GC, one’50” ahead of Bartali.
Stage 9b: Valetti climbed into the Maglia Rosa on mountain stage 9b. Bartali took the stage win, while Valetti took the race lead from Secundo Magni.
Stage 15: Bartali excelled in the Dolomite Mountains. Stage 15’s race route went over the Passo Rolle and an inspired Bartali rode into Trento for the stage win. He gained 7’48” on the race leader. Bartali took the Maglia Rosa.
Stage 16: The very next stage featured miserable weather conditions with snow on the mountain passes. Valetti broke away from the Bartali group on the climb of the Aprica and soloed for a brilliant stage win. Valetti's seven-minute time gain on Bartali put him back in the race lead with one stage to go.
Stage 17: An always aggressive Gino Bartali made one last attempt to drop Valetti on the famous climb of the Madonna di Ghisallo. Giovanni Valetti answered every attack and rode into Milan for the 1939 Giro victory.
Stage and Distance |
Stage Winner |
Race Leader |
Stage 1 Milan-Torino, 180 km |
Vasco Bergamaschi (Ita) |
Vasco Bergamaschi (Ita) |
Stage 2 Torino-Genova, 226 km |
Gino Bartali (Ita) |
Gino Bartali (Ita) |
Stage 3 Genova-Pisa, 187 km |
Cino Cinelli (Ita) |
Cino Cinelli (Ita) |
Stage 4 Pisa-Grosseto, 154 km |
Carmine Saponetti (Ita) |
Cino Cinelli (Ita) |
Stage 5 Grosseto-Rome, 222 km |
Olimpio Bizzi (Ita) |
Cino Cinelli (Ita) |
Stage 6a Rome-Rieti, 85 km |
Carmine Saponetti (Ita) |
Cino Cinelli (Ita) |
Stage 6b Rieti-Terminillo, 14 km ITT |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Cino Cinelli (Ita) |
Stage 7 Rieti-Pescara, 191 km |
Adolfo Leoni (Ita) |
Cino Cinelli (Ita) |
Stage 8 Pescara-Senigallia, 177 km |
Diego Marabelli (Ita) |
Cino Cinelli (Ita) |
Stage 9a Senigallia-Forli, 116 km |
Glauco Servadei (Ita) |
Secundo Magni (Ita) |
Stage 9b Forli-Firenze, 106 km |
Gino Bartali (Ita) |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Stage 10 Firenze-Bologna, 120 km |
Olimpio Bizzi (Ita) |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Stage 11 Bologna-Venezia, 231 km |
Pietro Chiappini (Ita) |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Stage 12 Venezia-Trieste, 173 km |
Giordano Cottur (Ita) |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Stage 13 Trieste-Gorizia, 39.8 km ITT |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Stage 14 Gorizia-Corti d'Ampezzo, 195 km |
Secondo Magni (Ita) |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Stage 15 Corti d'Ampezzo-Trento, 256 km |
Gino Bartali (Ita) |
Gino Bartali (Ita) |
Stage 16 Trento-Sondrio, 166 km |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Stage 17 Sondrio-Milan, 168 km |
Gino Bartali (Ita) |
 Giovanni Valetti (Ita)
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Mountain Prize |
Gino Bartali (Ita) |
General Classification:
Final General Classification |
Rank |
Rider |
Team |
Points |
1 |
Giovanni VALETTI (Ita)  |
Frejus |
88h02'00" |
2 |
Gino Bartali (Ita) |
Legnano |
+2'59" |
3 |
Mario Vicini (Ita) |
Lygie |
+5'07" |
4 |
Severino Canavesi (Ita) |
Gloria |
+7'55" |
5 |
Settimo Simonini (Ita) |
Il Littoriale (Groups) |
+16'40" |
6 |
Salvatore Crippa (Ita) |
Ganna |
+17'52" |
7 |
Giordano Cottur (Ita) |
Lygie |
+18'40" |
8 |
Cesare Del Cancia (Ita) |
Ganna |
+24'34" |
9 |
Cino Cinelli (Ita) |
Frejus |
+26'10" |
10 |
Bernardo Rogora (Ita) |
Gloria |
+27'40" |
11 |
Olimpio Bizzi (Ita) |
Frejus |
+28'03" |
12 |
Secundo Magni (Ita) |
Legnano |
+32'39" |
13 |
Glauco Servadei (Ita) |
Ganna |
+39'45" |
14 |
Michel Benente (Ita) |
Olympia |
+47'17" |
15 |
Diego Marabelli (Ita) |
Bianchi |
+57'56" |
16 |
Augusto Introzzi (Ita) |
Gloria |
+58'30" |
17 |
Aladino Mealli (Ita) |
SC Vigor (Groups) |
+1h08'12" |
18 |
Giuseppe Sabadini (Ita) |
Ganna |
+1h11'18" |
19 |
Giovanni Cazzulani (Ita) |
Legnano |
+1h22'30" |
20 |
Bruno Pasquini (Ita) |
La Voce di Mantova (Grp) |
+1h26'11" |
21 |
Walter Generati (Ita) |
Lygie |
+1h28'01" |
22 |
Adolfo Leoni (Ita) |
Bianchi |
+1h29'35" |
23 |
Vasco Bergamaschi (Ita) |
Bianchi |
+1h30'01" |
24 |
Spirito Godio (Ita) |
SC Vigor (Groups) |
+1h32'19" |
25 |
Giacinto Gentile (Ita) |
Ganna |
+1h38'26" |
26 |
Enrico Mollo (Ita) |
Olympia |
+1h53'13" |
27 |
Oreste Sartori (Ita) |
Ganna |
+1h53'29" |
28 |
Adriano Vignoli (Ita) |
Lygie |
+2h08'22" |
29 |
Primo Zucotti (Ita) |
Dopolavoro di Novi (Grp) |
+2h19'39" |
30 |
Theo Van Oppen (Bel) |
Team Belgium |
+2h28'21" |
31 |
Lino Marini (Ita) |
SS Genova 1913 (Grp) |
+2h33'00" |
32 |
Ezio Cecchi (Ita) |
Gloria |
+2h39'14" |
33 |
Guerrino Amadori (Ita) |
La Voce di Mantova (Grp) |
+2h40'25" |
34 |
Renzo Silvestri (Ita) |
UC Modenese (Groups) |
+2h52'25" |
35 |
Gino Malavasi (Ita) |
La Voce di Mantova (Grp) |
+2h57'32" |
36 |
Amilcare Amilsano (Ita) |
SC Vigor (Groups) |
+3h00'21" |
37 |
Carlo Moretti (Ita) |
Dopolavoro di Novi (Grp) |
+3h05'46" |
38 |
Carlo Romanatti (Ita) |
Bianchi |
+3h11'48" |
39 |
Guerrino Tomasoni (Ita) |
Frejus |
+3h12'14" |
40 |
Fulvio Montini (Ita) |
US Azzini (Groups) |
+3h29'38" |
41 |
Mario De Benedetti (Ita) |
Legnano |
+3h33'26" |
42 |
Albert Beckaert (Bel) |
Team Belgium |
+3h46'44" |
43 |
Ruggero Moro (Ita) |
SC Vigor (Groups) |
+3h55'38" |
44 |
Petrus Van Theemsche (Bel) |
Team Belgium |
+4h02'58" |
45 |
Faustino Montesi (Ita) |
Olympia |
+4h09'40" |
46 |
Elvezio Palla (Ita) |
Il Littoriale (Groups) |
+4h34'36" |
47 |
Pietro Rimoldi (Ita) |
Olympia |
+4h38'58" |
48 |
Marcel Van Houtte (Bel) |
Team Belgium |
+4h45'31" |
49 |
Pierino Chiappini (Ita) |
Il Littoriale (Groups) |
+5h10'18" |
50 |
Gérard Desmedt (Bel) |
Team Belgium |
+5h47'20" |
51 |
Francesco Doccini (Ita) |
Frejus |
+6h07'31" |
52 |
Marcel Claeys (Bel) |
Team Belgium |
+6h53'21" |
53 |
Ivo Mancini (Ita) |
SS Genova 1913 (Grps) |
+6h54'05" |
54 |
Serafino Santambrogio (Ita) |
US Azzini (Groups) |
+6h59'17" |
Final Mountains Classification |
Rank |
Name |
Team |
Points |
1 |
Gino Bartali (Ita) |
Legnano |
22 |
2 |
Giovanni Valetti (Ita) |
Frejus |
19 |
3 |
Michele Benente (Ita) |
Olympia |
14 |
4 |
Enrico Mollo (Ita) |
Olympia |
10 |
4 |
Settimo Simonini (Ita) |
Il Littoriale (Groups) |
10 |
6 |
Olimpio Bizzi (Ita) |
Frejus |
6 |
6 |
Giordano Cottur (Ita) |
Lygie |
6 |
6 |
Secondo Magni (Ita) |
Frejus |
6 |
9 |
Adolfo Leoni (Ita) |
Bianchi |
5 |
9 |
Aladino Mealli (Ita) |
SC Vigor (Groups) |
5 |
Final Group Rider Classification |
Rank |
Name |
Team |
Points |
1 |
Settimo Simonini (Ita) |
Il Littoriale (Groups) |
88h 18' 40" |
2 |
Aladino Mealli (Ita) |
SC Vigor (Groups) |
+ 51' 32" |
3 |
Bruno Pasquini (Ita) |
La Voce di Mantova (Grp) |
+ 1h 09' 31" |
4 |
Spirito Godio (Ita) |
SC Vigor (Groups) |
+ 1h 15' 39" |
5 |
Primo Zuccotti (Ita) |
Dopolavoro di Novi (Grp) |
+ 2h 02' 49" |
6 |
Lino Marini (Ita) |
SS Genova 1913 (Groups) |
+ 2h 16' 20" |
7 |
Guerrino Amadori (Ita) |
La Voce di Mantova (Grp) |
+ 2h 23' 45" |
8 |
Renzo Silvestri (Ita) |
UC Modenese (Groups) |
+ 2h 35' 45" |
9 |
Gino Malavasi (Ita) |
La Voce di Mantova (Grp) |
+ 2h 41' 12" |
10 |
Amilcare Amilsano (Ita) |
SC Vigor (Groups) |
+ 2h 43' 41" |
GdI 1940
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