Tirreno-Adriatico: All the essential info for the Race of the Two Seas

Date: Monday March 4, 2024 - Sunday March 10, 2024
Start: Lido di Camaiore 
Finish: San Benedetto del Tronto 
Total distance: 1,118km
Stages: Seven
Defending champion: Primož Roglič (Bora-Hansgrohe)

Held in the middle of Italy's boot, Tirreno-Adriatico has become known as the Race of the Two Seas as the peloton rides from the Tyrrhenian coast, in recent years from Lido di Camaiore, to the Adriatic coast for the finish in San Benedetto del Tronto. It was first raced in 1966, and 2024 will be its 59th edition. The race has become one of Italy's most prestigious stage races and is considered a vital test for any riders aiming to ride the Giro d’Italia two months later. 

Roger De Vlaeminck holds the record for the most wins in this race, with a whopping six victories between 1972 and 1977. While there is a list of riders who have won this race twice, including Primož Roglič, Alberto Contador, Vincenzo Nibali and Tadej Pogačar, no one has come close to challenging De Vlaeminck’s record. 

Last year, Roglič secured the general classification victory, beating second place João Almedia (UAE Team Emirates) by 18 seconds, closely followed by Tao Geoghegan Hart, who was then riding for Ineos Grenadiers, at 23 seconds. Not only did he take the overall victory, but the Slovenian rider secured three stage wins, the points jersey and the mountains classification. 

Roglič will not be defending his title in 2024 and is instead choosing to ride Paris-Nice, which takes place in the same week. However, his old teammate Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) will be looking to add this race to his ever-growing list of achievements, especially after being defeated by Pogačar in 2022, where Vinegaard came second with a 1-52 time gap at the end of the seven-day race. Pogačar won’t be in attendance this year, so Vinegaard may be able to seek redemption. He will have to beat the likes of Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates), Simon Yates (Jayco-Alula), Ben O’Connor (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Enric Mas (Movistar), however. But with the domination we witnessed at O Gran Camiño earlier this month, we don't doubt he will be able to achieve such a feat. 

Tirreno-Adriatico teams: 

• Alpecin-Deceuninck
• Arkéa-B&B Hotels
• Astana Qazaqstan
• Bahrain-Victorious 
• Bora-Hansgrohe 
• Cofidis
• Corratec-Vini Fantini
• Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale
• EF Education-EasyPost
• Groupama-FDJ
• Ineos Grenadiers 
• Intermarché-Wanty
• Israel-Premier Tech
• Lidl-Trek
• Movistar
• Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team
• Soudal–Quick-Step
• Team dsm-firmenich PostNL
• Jayco Alula
• Team Polti Kometa 
• Visma-Lease a Bike
• Tudor Pro Cycling
• UAE Team Emirates
• Uno-X Mobility
• VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizane’

Tirreno-Adriatico route 2024: 

Starting in Lido di Camaiore, the 2024 Tirreno-Adriatico is fast out of the blocks with a 10km-long individual time trial. The pan-flat route is basically two straight roads with a U-turn in the middle, so will be the perfect opportunity for the time trial specialists to leave it all out on the road. The second stage is a hilly stage as the peloton heads south to Follonica. The first half of the 198km stage is relatively flat, and the second half features two climbs – Castellina Marittima (11.7km at 3%) and Canneto (4.1km at 4%) – before it closes on a circuit around the town featuring several tight turns. Nevertheless, the last kilometre to the line is straight and flat, so will favour those with a fast finish. 

Stage three is the longest stage of the race at 220km. However, despite its length, this stage is a lot easier than stages to come, and it’s up and down all the way to the finish, with a 4% uphill gradient to the finish line in Gualdo Tadino that may prevent any sprinters from taking the stage win. The following stage is another long day in the saddle for the riders at 207km and dominated by the Valico di Castelluccio climb in the Sibillini mountains, which is 16.9km with an average gradient of 5%. After reaching the summit and climbing the Forca di Presta, it is a long descent back down until they reach 178km, where a 22.7km hilly lap of Giulianova will take place. The closing kilometres are uphill with a gradient of 4.5%. 

With an elevation of over 3,000m – the first of the race so far – stage five is the second hardest stage. Starting in Torricello Sicura, the peloton faces an undulating day with lots of steep ascents. But the main climb of the stage – the 11.9km San Giacomo – comes just 24km from the end and, therefore, will play a major role in deciding the day’s winner. 

One hard day to another, stage six is the toughest day of Tirreno-Adriatico, featuring plenty of climbs and a summit finish in Cagli, amounting to 3,544m of elevation. While the stage features climbs such as the Forchetta di Valle Avellana (3.2km at 7.3%) and Pian di Trebbio (7km at 5%), it will be on the summit finish that all the action will take place. The climb is 10.1 kilometres with an average gradient of 8.1%, with ramps up to 12% in the opening kilometres – pacing will be key here. 

The closing stage of the race starts and finishes in San Benedetto del Tronto and is a stage of two halves. The first half of the route passes through Monteprandone and continues to undulate through Montalto nelle Marche and Carassai as they head to Ripatransone. Halfway through the stage, the riders will enter a 15km circuit, which they will need to complete five times before an all-out sprint to the finish line. 

Stage one: Lido di Camaiore - Lido di Camaiore / 10km (ITT)
Stage two: Camiore - Follonica / 198km 
Stage three: Volterra - Gualdo Tadino / 220km
Stage four: Arrone - Giulianova / 207km
Stage five: Torricella Sicura - Valle Castellana / 146km
Stage six: Sassoferrato - Cagli / 180km
Stage seven: San Benedetto del Tronto - San Benedetto del Tronto / 154km