2024 Milano-Sanremo Race Preview
The details of this year's 2024 Milano-Sanremo are falling into place. Find the latest route profiles and maps below, followed by our strategic preview of the race.
The monument season gets underway in earnest with the running of La Classicissima, the longest one-day race on the professional calendar at just under 300 kilometres. Milano-Sanremo has a way of rewarding those who can survive the attrition of its relentless flat kilometres before the race explodes to life in the closing hour, and the 2024 edition promises yet another gripping finale along the Ligurian coast.
The route follows its traditional format, rolling out of Milan and making its way south and west toward the sea. The early hours are largely processional, with the peloton content to let a breakaway take its turns at the front while teams save their energy for what matters. Everything changes when the race hits the Cipressa and then the Poggio di Sanremo, the two climbs that have shaped the race's history. The Poggio in particular, rising just a few kilometres from the finish, is where the race is won or lost. It is just steep enough to split the bunch and just short enough that a small group can hold a gap to the line on the Via Roma.
Mathieu van der Poel arrives as the defending champion and in the form of a rider who has made the biggest races his own in recent seasons. The Dutchman is a supreme classics performer and his ability to read a race and produce a devastating acceleration makes him an obvious favourite once more.
Tadej Pogacar is the man many expect to challenge or even surpass him. The Slovenian has shown that he is capable of performing at the highest level across almost any terrain, and his climbing ability on the Poggio could prove decisive if he chooses to attack with conviction. There is a sense that Pogacar views this spring as an opportunity to cement his legacy as one of the greatest riders of his generation, and Sanremo would be a significant addition to his palmares.
Jasper Philipsen and Mads Pedersen represent the sprinter contingent, riders who will be hoping the race comes back together after the Poggio and gives them a chance to use their speed. It is a delicate calculation for their teams, who must work to control the race while keeping their man close enough to the front when it matters. Wout van Aert, despite not being at his very best this early in the season, is another rider with the physical qualities to be competitive in multiple scenarios.
The weather can play a significant role along this stretch of the Italian Riviera, and any wind or rain would add another layer of complexity to an already demanding day. Riders and team directors will be watching the forecast closely in the days before the start.
What makes Milano-Sanremo so endlessly fascinating is its capacity to surprise. The sheer length of the race creates fatigue that can expose the strongest and occasionally elevate the unexpected. A rider who has quietly survived the day can sometimes find enough in reserve to make a move on the Poggio that nobody anticipated. That possibility, remote but real, is part of what draws so many to watch every March.
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