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By Barry Boyce, CyclingRevealed Historian
GdI May 18 - June 09, 1973 |
3,801 Km |
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Finishers: 113 |
Average Speed: 35.506 km/h |
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Merckx Dominated from Day 1
These are the Golden Years of Eddy Merckx. The Belgian already had won the Vuelta a Espana in early May and came to the 1973 Giro d’Italia (on only 5 days rest) to gain a rare springtime Vuelta/Giro double victory.
The Giro start in Verviers, Belgium gave Merckx a chance to begin his dominance. The Cannibal gained time on his main rivals on the first three stages and wore the Maglia Rosa from start to finish. The Belgian’s dominance with six stage wins was on the daily front page throughout the race.
At the finish in Trieste Eddy Merckx claimed his fourth Giro d’Italia victory and combined with a 1973 Vuelta a Espana victory completed a “Grand Tour Spring” to be remembered for a while.
SPCIAL NOTE: French filmmaker Claude Lelouch announced he would be filming Merckx’s attempt to complete the "Giro/Vuelta Double".
Teams:
The fourteen teams that took part in the race were:
- Molteni
- Bianchi-Campagnolo
- Brooklyn
- Filotex
- Dreher
- Rokado-De Gribaldy
- GBC-Sony
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- Kas-Kaskol
- Flandria-Carpenter-Shimano
- SCIC
- Jolly Ceramica
- Magniflex
- Sammontana
- Zonca
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Race Summary:
Prologue- the 1973 Giro d'Italia started with an unusual prologue. It was a two-man Team Time Trial, not the normal Individual Time Trial or full Team Time Trial. The results from the stage did not count towards the GC but were used to determine the first wearers of the Maglia Rosa (Pink Jersey) and Maglia Ciclamino (Purple Jersey). The rider with the quickest time of the two would wear the Pink Jersey, while the second placed rider wore the Purple Jersey. Eddy Merckx finished the fastest, which earned him the Pink Jersey, while Roger Swerts earned the Purple Jersey.
Stage 1 to Stage 20- Eddy Merckx dominated the Giro. He rode into the finish in Trieste to win the 1973 Maglia Rosa AND he won the Points Classification, the Maglia Ciclamino.
Stage 19 (Cima Coppi): Spanish climber Jose Manuel Fuente won the Cima Coppi prize in 1972. The nineteenth stage, 208 km from Andalo to Aurozo di Cadore, included the ascents of the Valles, Santa Lucia, Passo Giau, and Tre Croci. Fuente won the stage 1’06” ahead of young Italian Francesco Moser and won the 1973 Cima Coppi.
Stage and Distance |
Stage Winner |
Race Leader |
Prologue Verviers (Bel), 5.2 km 2-Man TTT |
Merckx (Bel) & Swerts (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 1 Verviers-Cologne (Ger), 137 km |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stg 2 Cologne (Ger)-Luxembourg (Lux), 227 km |
Roger De Vlaeminck (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 3 Luxembourg-Strasbourg (Fra), 239 km |
Gustaaf Van Roosbroeck (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 4 Geneva (Sui)-Aosta, 163 km |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 5 St Vincent-Milan, 173 km |
Gerben Karstens (Ned) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 6 Milan-Iseo, 144 km |
Gianni Motta (Ita) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 7 Iseo-Lido Nazioni, 248 km |
Rik Van Linden (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 8 Lido Nazioni-Carpegna, 156 km |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 9 Carpegna-Alba Adriatica, 243 km |
Patrick Sercu (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 10 Alba Adriatica-Lanciano, 174 km |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 11 Lanciano-Bevenento, 230 km |
Roger De Vlaeminck (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 12 Bevenento-Fiuggi Terme, 236 km |
Tullio Rossi (Ita) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 13 Fiuggi Terme-Bolsena, 215 km |
Roger De Vlaeminck (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 14 Bolsena-Firenze, 202 km |
Francesco Moser (Ita) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 15 Firenze-Forte dei Marmi, 150 km |
Martin Rodriguez (Col) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 16 F dei Marmi-Circ. Versilia, 37 km ITT |
Felice Gimondi (Ita) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 17 Forte dei Marmi-Verona, 244 km |
Rik Van Linden (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 18 Verona-Andalo, 173 km |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 19 Andalo-Auronzo di Cadore, 208 km |
Jose-Manuel Fuente (Spa) |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Stage 20 Auronzo di Cadore-Trieste, 197 km |
Marino Basso (Ita) |
 Eddy Merckx (Bel)
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Mountain Classification |
Jose-Manuel Fuente (Spa) |
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Points Classification |
 Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
General Classification:
Final General Classification |
Rank |
Rider |
Team |
Points |
1 |
Eddy MERCKX (Bel)   |
Molteni |
106h54'41" |
2 |
Felice Gimondi (Ita) |
Bianchi-Campagnolo |
+7'42" |
3 |
Giovanni Battaglin (Ita) |
Jolly Ceramica |
+10'20" |
4 |
José Pesarrodona (Spa) |
Kas-Kaskol |
+15'51" |
5 |
Santiago Lazcano (Spa) |
Kas-Kaskol |
+19'11" |
6 |
Wladimiro Panizza (Ita) |
GBC-Sony |
+19'45" |
7 |
Ole Ritter (Den) |
Bianchi-Campagnolo |
+24'24" |
8 |
José-Manuel Fuente (Spa) |
Kas-Kaskol |
+26'06" |
9 |
Francisco Galdos (Spa) |
Kas-Kaskol |
+26'35" |
10 |
Gianni Motta (Ita) |
Zonca |
+26'49" |
11 |
Roger De Vlaeminck (Bel) |
+31'28" |
63 |
Emanuele Bergamo (Ita) |
+2h15'55" |
12 |
Roberto Poggiali (Ita) |
+32'25" |
64 |
Jose-Luis Uribezubia (Spa) |
+2h17'00" |
13 |
Gosta Pettersson (Swe) |
+34'42" |
65 |
Mauro Vannucchi (Ita) |
+2h18'14" |
14 |
Italo Zilioli (Ita) |
+37'08" |
66 |
Nemesio Jimenez (Spa) |
+2h18'21" |
15 |
Francesco Moser (Ita) |
+38'42" |
67 |
Adriano Pella (Ita) |
+2h21'05" |
16 |
Hennie Kuiper (Ned) |
+38'50" |
68 |
Sigfrido Fontanelli (Ita) |
+2h27'01" |
17 |
Giovanni Cavalcanti (Ita) |
+55'53" |
69 |
Alessio Antonini (Ita) |
+2h30'00" |
18 |
Luis Zubero (Spa) |
+57'22" |
70 |
Ueli Sutter (Sui) |
+2h30'18" |
19 |
Gonzalo Aja (Spa) |
+59'26" |
71 |
Valerio Lualdi (Ita) |
+2h32'06" |
20 |
Roger Swerts (Bel) |
+1h00'01" |
72 |
Piero Dallai (Ita) |
+2h32'23" |
21 |
Joseph Bruyere (Bel) |
+1h02'07" |
73 |
Arnaldo Caverzasi (Ita) |
+2h35'18" |
22 |
Enrico Paolini (Ita) |
+1h06'58" |
74 |
Tullio Rossi (Ita) |
+2h38'44" |
23 |
Gerben Karstens (Ned) |
+1h09'57" |
75 |
Celestino Vercelli (Ita) |
+2h39'02" |
24 |
Walter Riccomi (Ita) |
+1h11'14" |
76 |
Adriano Passuello (Ita) |
+2h41'16" |
25 |
Luciano Conati (Ita) |
+1h16'47" |
77 |
Piero Spinelli (Ita) |
+2h43'19" |
26 |
Frans Mintjens (Bel) |
+1h16'18" |
78 |
Daniel Ducreux (Fra) |
+2h44'13" |
27 |
Silvano Schiavon (Ita) |
+1h17'53" |
79 |
Gaetano Juliano (Ita) |
+2h44'49" |
28 |
Jos De Schoenmaecker (Bel) |
+1h19'08" |
80 |
Angelo Bassini (Ita) |
+2h45'22" |
29 |
Alessio Peccolo (Ita) |
+1h19'38" |
81 |
Enzo Brentegani (Ita) |
+2h46'32" |
30 |
Primo Mori (Ita) |
+1h22'52" |
82 |
Giovanni Varini (Ita) |
+2h47'52" |
31 |
Victor Van Schil (Bel) |
+1h24'25" |
83 |
Giacomo Bazzan (Ita) |
+2h48'10" |
32 |
Edward Janssens (Ned) |
+1h24'52" |
84 |
Marino Basso (Ita) |
+2h50'49" |
33 |
Johan De Muynck (Bel) |
+1h25'43" |
85 |
Pierino Gavazzi (Ita) |
+2h53'35" |
34 |
Arturo Pecchielan (Ita) |
+1h27'15" |
86 |
Jan Vandewiele |
+2h55'12" |
35 |
Joseph Huysmans (Bel) |
+1h30'34" |
87 |
Giorgio Favaro (Ita) |
+2h56'36" |
36 |
Donato Giuliani (Ita) |
+1h38'16" |
88 |
Pierfranco Vianelli (Ita) |
+2h56'41" |
37 |
Domingo Perurena (Spa) |
+1h38'54" |
89 |
Mauro Simonetti (Ita) |
+2h56'42" |
38 |
Roger Gilson (Lux) |
+1h39'27" |
90 |
Gustave Hermans (Bel) |
+2h59'16" |
39 |
Fabrizio Fabbri (Ita) |
+1h40'19" |
91 |
Aldo Parecchini (Ita) |
+3h00'39" |
40 |
Andre Dierickx (Bel) |
+1h40'48" |
92 |
Karl-Heinz Küster (Ger) |
+3h01'34" |
41 |
Martin Rodriguez (Col) |
+1h41'10" |
93 |
Marcello Osler (Ita) |
+3h02'59" |
42 |
Joseph Spruyt (Bel) |
+1h41'16" |
94 |
Luciano Borgognoni (Ita) |
+3h05'17" |
43 |
Renato Marchetti (Ita) |
+1h43'15" |
95 |
Roberto Sorlini (Ita) |
+3h05'17" |
44 |
Renato Laghi (Ita) |
+1h43'16" |
96 |
Franco Mori (Ita) |
+3h06'18" |
45 |
Silvano Ravagli (Ita) |
+1h43'19" |
97 |
Patrick Sercu (Bel) |
+3h08'34" |
46 |
Fausto Bertoglio (Ita) |
+1h43'32" |
98 |
Mauro Landini (Ita) |
+3h11'42" |
47 |
Gabriele Mugnaini (Ita) |
+1h44'49" |
99 |
Julien Van Lint (Bel) |
+3h13'27" |
48 |
Fritz Wehrli (Sui) |
+1h45'05" |
100 |
Claudio Bonacina (Ita) |
+3h13'54" |
49 |
Louis Pfenninger (Sui) |
+1h46'32" |
101 |
Ercole Gualazzini (Ita) |
+3h18'15" |
50 |
Lino Farisato (Ita) |
+1h48'06" |
102 |
Pietro Campagnari (Ita) |
+3h18'39" |
51 |
Costantino Conti |
+1h48'50" |
103 |
Romano Tumellero (Ita) |
+3h20'43" |
52 |
Carlo Brunetti (Ita) |
+1h52'02" |
104 |
Sandro Quintarelli (Ita) |
+3h21'30" |
53 |
Jose Grande (Spa) |
+1h54'14" |
105 |
Giuliano Dominoni (Ita) |
+3h23'20" |
54 |
Enrico Maggioni (Ita) |
+1h56'36" |
106 |
Pietro Guerra (Ita) |
+3h24'03" |
55 |
Giuseppe Perletto (Ita) |
+1h56'39" |
107 |
Rik Van Linden (Bel) |
+3h28'10" |
56 |
Claudio Michelotto (Ita) |
+1h57'28" |
108 |
Julien Stevens (Bel) |
+3h31'50" |
57 |
Aldo Moser (Ita) |
+1h58'39" |
109 |
Marino Conton (Ita) |
+3h36'37" |
58 |
Davide Boifava (Ita) |
+1h58'54" |
110 |
Giovanni Dalla Bona (Ita) |
+3h44'43" |
59 |
Bruno Buffa (Ita) |
+2h04'07" |
111 |
Piero Gambarotto (Ita) |
+3h52'50" |
60 |
Jean-Luc Molineris (Fra) |
+2h04'07" |
112 |
Walter Avogadri (Ita) |
+4h11'52" |
61 |
Giacinto Santambrogio (Ita) |
+2h13'50" |
113 |
Franco Ongarato (Ita) |
+4h25'09" |
62 |
Giancarlo Polidori (Ita) |
+2h14'56" |
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Final Mountains Classification |
Rank |
Rider |
Team |
Points |
1 |
Jose MANUEL FUENTE (Spa) |
Kas-Kaskol |
490 |
| 2 |
Eddy Merckx (Bel) |
Molteni |
350 |
3 |
Giovanni Battaglin (Ita) |
Jolly Ceramica |
260 |
4 |
Felice Gimondi (Ita) |
Bianchi-Campagnolo |
150 |
5 |
Lino Farisato (Ita) |
SCIC |
100 |
6t |
Wladimiro Panizza (Ita) |
GBC-Sony |
60 |
Ole Ritter (Den) |
Bianchi-Campagnolo |
8t
|
Italo Zilioli (Ita) |
Dreher |
50 |
Ottavio Crepaldi (Ita) |
Zonca |
Santiago Lazcano (Spa) |
Kas-Kaskol |
Final Points Classification |
Rank |
Rider |
Team |
Points |
1 |
Eddy MERCKX (Bel) |
Molteni |
237 |
2 |
Roger De Vlaeminck (Bel) |
Brooklyn |
216 |
3 |
Felice Gimondi (Ita) |
Bianchi-Campagnolo |
146 |
4 |
Rik Van Linden (Bel) |
Rokado-De Gribaldy |
141 |
5 |
Gerben Karstens (Ned) |
Rokado-De Gribaldy |
132 |
Final Neo-Pro Classification |
Rank |
Rider |
Team |
Points |
1 |
Giovanni Battaglin (Ita) |
Jolly Ceramica |
107h 05' 01" |
2 |
Francesco Moser (Ita) |
Filotex |
+ 28' 22" |
3 |
Hennie Kuiper (Ned) |
Rokado-De Gribaldy |
+ 28' 30" |
4 |
Walter Riccomi (Ita) |
Sammontana |
+ 1h 01' 34" |
5 |
Luciano Conati (Ita) |
SCIC |
+ 1h 06' 27" |
GdI 1974
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