The route of the 2018 Giro d´Italia will not be presented until the final week of November, but details of the course have trickled out in the Italian press in the weeks since Jerusalem was confirmed as the host for the race´s opening time trial on May 4 next year. Although RCS Sport has so far confirmed only the details of the opening three stages in Israel, Turin-based daily La Stampa reported on Friday that the climax of the Giro will feature three tough stages in the Alps in Piedmont before the caravan transfers south for the final stage in Rome on May 27. The Giro is set to tackle the mighty Colle delle Finestre, the Jafferau and Cervinia in a demanding denouement. According to La Stampa, stage 18 of the Giro is likely to run from Milan to a summit finish at the ski resort of Pratonevoso. The climb has twice featured in the race, with the eventual overall winner claiming the stage win on each occasion.ADVERTISEMENT Pavel Tonkov won at Pratonevoso in 1996, while Stefano Garzelli claimed a small group sprint at the summit in 2000, two days before divesting Francesco Casagrande of the pink jersey in the final time trial. The 2008 Tour de France also featured a stage finish at Pratonevoso, with Simon Gerrans victorious. Stage 19, on the final Friday, could well prove to be the tappone of the Giro, with La Stampa reporting that the peloton will scale the dirt road of the Colle delle Finestre, then climb to Sestriere before tackling a demanding summit finish on the Jafferau, above Bardonecchia. The sterrato of the Colle delle Finestre famously made its Giro debut on the final weekend in 2005, when Paolo Savoldelli gamely defended his maglia rosa. It also featured in 2011 and most recently in 2015, when Mikel Landa´s powerful attack put the seemingly impregnable leader Alberto Contador into unexpected difficulty, though Contador retained his overall lead and won the Giro the following day.
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