Tre Colli di Trento is a climbing race in the Italian region of Trentino-Alto Adige, also known as Südtirol. Trentino-Alto Adige is a bilingual region as it joined Italy in 1918. It belonged to Austria earlier, but was annexed by Italy after the first world war. The dominance of either the German or Italian language differs from valley to valley, and the riders will therefore cross many lingual borders during the race.
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Read moreTre Colli di Trento is a climbing race in the Italian region of Trentino-Alto Adige, also known as Südtirol. Trentino-Alto Adige is a bilingual region as it joined Italy in 1918. It belonged to Austria earlier, but was annexed by Italy after the first world war. The dominance of either the German or Italian language differs from valley to valley, and the riders will therefore cross many lingual borders during the race.
The start is at the town of Brixen. The first 75 kilometres of the race are mostly flat, with a few hills inbetween. The riders first head north, following the Brenner highway. They leave the highway to the east for the town of Bruneck, and after Bruneck they head south. At the town of Badia, the riders enter the ski resort of Val Gardena, one of the biggest in the world. When the riders arrive in the town of Corvara, they enter the circuit of the Sella Ronda (the Sella Loop), which encircles the Sella Massive. The Sella Ronda is a prestigous objective for many amateur cyclists and skiërs.
In Corvara, the riders start with the first of the three climbs, to the Grödnerjoch/Passo Gardena. The climb, with an average gradient of 10%, is nine kilometres long and includes 17 hairpin turns. It is usually very crowded, because the many hairpins and few trees provide an excellent panorama for the crowd.
After a short descent to Plan de Gralba, the riders head south to tackle the Sellajoch/Passo Sella. This is the shortest climb of the race, with 4,5 kilometres and an average gradient of 11%. However, it takes the riders to the highest paved pass in the Dolomites. The peloton usually begins to break up on the climb to Sellajoch, as the kilometres begin to count and the gradient is slightly higher than the climb to Grödnerjoch.
After another short descent, the riders will start to climb for the third and final time, this time to the Passo Pordoi. Even though the final climb isn't long, the average gradient of 15% ensures a spectacular finish. The riders take 14 hairpin turns, and after the final climb they arrive on a short, flat strech which gives an eventual leading group the opportunity to sprint for victory under the shadows of the mighty Sella Mountains.