2021 Strade Bianche Race Preview
The details of this year's 2021 Strade Bianche are falling into place. Find the latest route profiles and maps below, followed by our strategic preview of the race.
The roads of Tuscany will once again take centre stage on Saturday as professional cycling's most visually stunning one-day race returns for its fifteenth edition. The Strade Bianche has in a short space of time established itself as one of the most eagerly anticipated classics on the calendar, and the 2021 edition promises to be no different, with a world-class field assembling in Siena for what should be a brutal and beautiful day of racing.
The route covers 184 kilometres from Siena to Siena, with the famous white gravel roads, the strade bianche themselves, making up around 63 kilometres of the total distance. These unpaved sectors are the defining feature of the race, capable of splitting the peloton and destroying the ambitions of even the most well-prepared riders. The dust, the gradients and the sheer unpredictability of racing on gravel demand a particular kind of toughness, and the final climb up the Via Santa Caterina into the medieval heart of Siena remains one of the most dramatic finishes in all of cycling.
Defending champion Wout van Aert will be among the favourites and will be eager to add a second title to the one he claimed in the rescheduled 2020 edition. The Belgian is in superb early-season form and possesses the power and technical ability on difficult surfaces that this race demands. His presence alone makes any breakaway attempt a complicated proposition for rivals.
Mathieu van der Poel is another rider who cannot be overlooked. The Dutchman has shown a remarkable ability to perform on any terrain and in any conditions, and the demanding nature of the Tuscan roads suits his aggressive and instinctive racing style perfectly. A rivalry between van Aert and van der Poel would be a mouth-watering prospect for spectators.
Egan Bernal will be looking to demonstrate his versatility after a strong showing at altitude in recent weeks, while Julian Alaphilippe, the reigning world champion, will be keen to remind the classics peloton of his abilities on punishing terrain. Tadej Pogacar should also be considered a genuine contender given his extraordinary talent and his ability to climb and descend with equal fluency.
The weather forecast will play a role in shaping the narrative, as it so often does in Tuscany in early March. Rain can transform the white roads into something altogether more treacherous, adding an extra layer of uncertainty to an already unpredictable race. Whatever the conditions, the riders will be asked to dig deep from the very earliest kilometres, and by the time the final gravel sectors are reached in the closing stages, the race will almost certainly have been blown apart.
Few races reward boldness and raw endurance quite like this one, and Saturday should once again confirm why Strade Bianche has earned its place among the most cherished days on the cycling calendar.
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