#TotA Day 4: The queen stage leads the peloton to Trentino

Good morning from the 2021 Tour of the Alps! With its 168,6 Km from Naturns/Naturno (South Tyrol) to Valle del Chiese/Pieve di Bono (Trentino), stage 4 is yet another promise of great show on Thursday, April 22nd. With the way the race has been conducted so far and considering the stage profile, there’s little doubt that Simon Yates’ leadership will be tested on the Passo Castrin, Passo Campo Carlo Magno and Boniprati climbs.

Boniprati’s ascent and downhill could offer the Team BikeExchange leader’s rivals one of the biggest opportunities to try to upset the GC: from Russian Pavel Sivakov, to Spaniard Pello Bilbao and Irish Dan Martin, they will all take in the trial by fire on the 10 km ascent with a 6,8% average gradient, but with 3 km constantly grazing 10%. With just the grand finale in Riva del Garda left after this effort, there’s no time to hide: a big part of the 2021 Tour of the Alps could be played today.

DISPOSITION

Meeting Place: 9:00, Naturns/Naturno (Rathausstraße/Via Municipio)
Start: 10:50 Naturns/Naturn (Dammstraße/Via dell’Argine)
Finish: 15:30, Valle del Chiese/Pieve di Bono (Via Roma)
Intermediate Sprint: Dimaro, km 87,1
KOM: Passo Campo Carlo Magno (1a cat., km 101,4); Boniprati (2a cat., km 161,7)

THE STARTING LINE: NATURNS/NATURNO. Naturns is the village of hiking and bike, thanks to a varied selection of scenic itineraries: from the cable car to the hiking paradise of the Sonnenberg, from the mountain to the wonderful bike paths, leading into the exploration of the Vinschgau Valley.

ON THE ROAD: Campo Carlo Magno is an Alpine pass that connects Val di Sole and Val Rendena, Dimaro and the renowned ski resort of Madonna di Campiglio. The pass is named after Charlemagne, who is said to have crossed the pass on his way to Rome in 800 AD for his coronation as emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.

THE STAGE TASTE: The Storo yellow flour is definitely among the most well-known traditional products in Valle del Chiese. It is used to make the equally well-known Storo Polenta. Storo yellow flour is produced from “Marano” grain that is grown without forcing, respecting the cycles of nature.

DON’T MISS: The Adamello Brenta Natural Park is the biggest in the Trentino region. The natural park offers its visitors a wide variety of landscapes, ranging from the wetlands of the river valley to the forests and the walls of the Brenta Dolomites, adorned by a flora and fauna among the richest and most flourishing throughout the Alps.

THE FINISH: VALLE DEL CHIESE/PIEVE DI BONO. Centuries-old traditions have left their traces in the Valle del Chiese: Pieve di Bono is one of the clearest examples. The main points of interest are the Castel Romano, reachable through a wonderful botanical path, and the Forte Larino, whose way passes by the most iconic sites of the Great War. In ancient times, the village represented the economic and political center of the homonymous valley.

REMEMBERING MICHELE

April 22nd is an emotional day for the Tour of the Alps, as well as for the whole World of cycling. Four years ago today, a tragic road accident stripped away the life of Michele Scarponi. The Italian rider had just returned from the Tour of the Alps, where he had won the first historical stage of the race’s new Euro-Regional era, from Kufstein to Innsbruck. It would have been the last of his too short life.

TRAFFIC CLOSURES

For stages 4, the authorities of the Autonomous Province of Bolzano have issued an order to suspend the traffic, in both directions, on all roads crossed by the race, at least 40 minutes before the passage of the start vehicle and until the passage of the closing vehicle.

The authorities of the Autonomous Province of Trento have issued an order to suspend the traffic in the opposite direction to the cyclists’ direction 60 minutes before the times indicated in the timesheets, and 30 minutes in the direction of travel in advance of the times indicated in the timesheets.

TV DISTRIBUTION

Two hours of Live broadcast each day characterized 2021 Tour of the Alps, from 2.00 pm CET to 4.00 pm CET.

TV: Eurosport (Europe, East Asia, USA, Canada, South America, Central America, Pacific Area, Indian Subcontinent), RaiSport (Italy, San Marino, Vatican City), ORF (Highlights in Austria), Equipe TV (France), TV2 (Denmark).

LIVE STREAMING: Eurosport Player, GCN – Global Cycling Network, Repubblica.it, Tuttobiciweb.it, Federciclismo, K19.at, PMG Sport (Facebook Page and Youtube channel in Austria, Japan, Cina, New Zealand and Mexico).