2021 Milano-Sanremo Race Preview
The details of this year's 2021 Milano-Sanremo are falling into place. Find the latest route profiles and maps below, followed by our strategic preview of the race.
The first monument of the 2021 cycling season arrives with Milan San Remo, the longest one-day race on the calendar and one of the most unpredictable classics of the year. Stretching close to 300 kilometres from the streets of Milan down to the Ligurian coast, La Classicissima demands patience, strength, and an explosive finishing kick from whoever wants to stand on the top step of the podium in San Remo.
The race traditionally funnels through the Ligurian hills in its closing stages, with the Cipressa and the iconic Poggio di San Remo serving as the final opportunities for the peloton to be shaken apart. The Poggio, with its 3.7 kilometres of climbing beginning just inside the final 10 kilometres, is where races are won and lost. A group that crests together will almost certainly see the outcome decided by a bunch sprint on the Via Roma, while an attack on the descent or on the climb itself can deliver a solo or small group finish.
Wout van Aert arrives as one of the heavy favourites after his stunning performance in the 2020 edition, where he launched a trademark acceleration on the Poggio that only the brilliant Julian Alaphilippe could match, before the Frenchman outpaced him on the descent and in the sprint. Van Aert has the power to climb, the technical ability to descend dangerously fast, and a sprint that can beat almost anyone in a small group. He will be a marked man throughout.
Mathieu van der Poel makes his debut at this race and his presence adds enormous excitement to the occasion. Fresh from his extraordinary win at Strade Bianche earlier in the week, the Dutchman showed he is in superb form and capable of riding aggressively and reading a race brilliantly. His capacity to accelerate repeatedly and push a massive gear makes him a genuine threat if the race arrives at the Poggio with the favourites intact.
Alaphilippe himself will be eager to go one better than 2020. The world champion has a deep love of this race and his attacking instincts suit the Poggio perfectly. Whether he can hold off faster finishers in a sprint or whether he needs to go early will be the key tactical question for his Deceuninck Quick-Step team.
Caleb Ewan and Jasper Philipsen represent the pure sprinting options if the race comes back together, though the selective finale makes a bunch gallop far from certain. Peter Sagan, a former winner, remains capable of featuring if his legs are good, and riders like Søren Kragh Andersen and Greg Van Avermaet will look for opportunities if chaos ensues.
The weather and road conditions will play their usual role, and with so many dangerous riders in the mix, the closing kilometres promise to be as dramatic as ever.
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