:1976 Giro d'Italia

{{main list|List of teams and cyclists in the 1976 Giro d'Italia}}

A total of twelve teams were invited to participate in the 1976 Giro d'Italia.{{cite news|url=http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1976/05/21/MD19760521-019.pdf|title=Lista de inscritos|language=es|date=21 May 1976|page=19|publisher=El Mundo Deportivo|access-date=27 May 2012|trans-title=Entry List|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150309161000/http://hemeroteca-paginas.mundodeportivo.com/EMD01/HEM/1976/05/21/MD19760521-019.pdf|archive-date=9 March 2015|url-status=live}} Each team sent a squad of ten riders, which meant that the race started with a peloton of 120 cyclists.{{cite web|url=http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1976.html |title=1976 Giro d'Italia |work= Bike Race Info |publisher=Dog Ear Publishing |author=Bill and Carol McGann|access-date=2012-08-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227181526/http://bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1976.html|archive-date=27 February 2014|url-status=live}} From the riders that began this edition, 86 made it to the finish in Milan.

The teams entering the race were:

The route for the race was revealed on 30 January 1976,{{cite news |url=https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1976/01/31/page_012.pdf|title=Vartao il <> '76|language=it |date=31 January 1976 |page=12 |newspaper=l'Unità |publisher=PCI |access-date=22 June 2018|author=Gino Sala|trans-title=The <> '76 Launched|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191022015151/https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1976/01/31/page_012.pdf|archive-date=22 October 2019 |url-status=live }} while a final draft of the race was released on 13 April 1976.{{cite news |url=https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1976/04/14/page_016.pdf|title=È un <> davvero terribile (e 12 giorni dopo c'e il Tour)|language=it |date=14 April 1976 |page=16 |newspaper=l'Unità |publisher=PCI |access-date=22 June 2018|author=Gino Sala|trans-title=It's a <> really terrible (and 12 days later there's the Tour)|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190429034206/https://archivio.unita.news/assets/main/1976/04/14/page_016.pdf|archive-date=29 April 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite news|url=http://doc.rero.ch/record/265337/files/1976-05-20.pdf|title=Moser et Baronchelli: des candidats serieux mais Merckx voudra obtenir sa 6e victoire|trans-title=Moser and Baronchelli: serious candidates but Merckx will want to achieve his 6th victory|language=fr|newspaper=La Liberté|date=20 May 1975|page=28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200415023259/http://doc.rero.ch/record/265337/files/1976-05-20.pdf|archive-date=15 April 2020|via=RERO}}{{cite news|url=http://doc.rero.ch/record/66560/files/1976-05-21.pdf|title=Merckx : un record de victoires au Giro?|trans-title=Merckx: A record of victories at the Giro?|language=fr|newspaper=L'Express|date=21 May 1976|page=22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200415023315/http://doc.rero.ch/record/66560/files/1976-05-21.pdf|archive-date=15 April 2020|via=RERO}}

During the stage 1A on 21 May, Juan Manuel Santisteban crashed and hit his head, ultimately dying from his injuries.{{cite web |url=http://www.giroditalia.it/eng/editions/1968-1977/ |title=1976 |date=2017 |work=Giro d'Italia |publisher=La Gazzetta dello Sport |access-date=13 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701114308/http://www.giroditalia.it/eng/editions/1968-1977/ |archive-date=1 July 2017 |url-status=live }} The Giro organisation allowed his team to let another rider take his place, but the team had no rider available so this was not done.{{cite book|url=https://www.amazon.com/Giro-dItalia-rules-statistics-1909-2023/dp/B0CKB3YHLY|title=Giro d'Italia rules and statistics|first=Pieter|last=van den Akker|year=2023|isbn=979-8863173719|page=9}}

Patrick Sercu would win both stage 1A and 1B, Roger de Vlaeminck would win stage 2 and the two of them would alternate between wearing the leader's jersey depending on the tie-breakers following the first few stages. De Muynck took over the lead after winning stage 6 by 0:21 over the main field following a crash which left him alone at the front as a group of eight riders were now tied for 2nd in the overall standings :05 behind. The time trial in Stage 7 was won by Francesco Moser with Gimondi placing 2nd seven seconds behind putting Moser into the Maglia Rosa as the overall leader and Gimondi in 2nd seven seconds behind{{Cite web |url=https://www.bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1976.html |title=1976 Giro d'Italia by BikeRaceInfo |website=www.bikeraceinfo.com |access-date=2019-08-27}} Stage 8 was won by de Vlaeminck as Eddy Merckx crossed the line in 2nd which would be his highest stage placing in this final Giro of his remarkable career. Gimondi crossed in 3rd and while he was by no means a favorite for overall victory, because Moser lost nearly a minute Gimondi would wear the Pink Jersey for the first time since the 1969 Giro.

Over the next ten stages Gimondi maintained his overall lead but on stage 19 Johan de Muynck was able to get away from him and he took over the lead by 0:16. Stage 21 was the final day in the mountains where Merckx took 2nd and Gimondi won the stage. De Muynck finished 9th, but finished in the same time so the overall situation remained the same. Stage 22a was the final ITT and it was here that Gimondi won the Giro. He finished in 6th place 0:43 behind stage winner Joseph Bruyere but 0:44 ahead of de Muynck effectively making him the winner by 0:19.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bikeraceinfo.com/giro/giro1976.html |title=1976 Giro d'Italia |website=BikeRaceInfo}}

File:Torri del Vaiolet.JPG was the finish of stage 19 for the 1976 running of the Giro d'Italia.]]

There were four main individual classifications contested in the 1976 Giro d'Italia, as well as a team competition. Four of them awarded jerseys to their leaders. The general classification was the most important and was calculated by adding each rider's finishing times on each stage.{{cite web|author=Laura Weislo |url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2008/giro08/?id=/features/2008/giro_classifications08 |title=Giro d'Italia classifications demystified |date=13 May 2008 |work=Cycling News |publisher=Future Publishing Limited |access-date=13 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130508234448/http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2008/giro08/?id=/features/2008/giro_classifications08 |archive-date=8 May 2013 |url-status=live }} The rider with the lowest cumulative time was the winner of the general classification and was considered the overall winner of the Giro. The rider leading the classification wore a pink jersey to signify the classification's leadership.

The second classification was the points classification. Riders received points for finishing in the top positions in a stage finish, with first place getting the most points, and lower placings getting successively fewer points. The rider leading this classification wore a purple (or cyclamen) jersey. The mountains classification was the third classification and its leader was denoted by the green jersey. In this ranking, points were won by reaching the summit of a climb ahead of other cyclists. Each climb was ranked as either first, second or third category, with more points available for higher category climbs. Most stages of the race included one or more categorized climbs, in which points were awarded to the riders that reached the summit first. The Cima Coppi, the race's highest point of elevation, awarded more points than the other first category climbs. The Cima Coppi for this Giro was the Sella Pass, which was crossed first by Spanish rider Andrés Gandarias during stage 19.{{cite web |author=Diego Nart |url=http://altoadige.gelocal.it/sport/2011/05/20/news/quel-9-giugno-del-1976-gimondi-sul-gardeccia-costruisce-la-sua-rosa-1.4241004 |title=Quel 9 giugno del 1976 Gimondi sul Gardeccia costruisce la sua rosa |date=20 May 2011 |work=Alto Adige |publisher=Elemedia S.p.A |access-date=20 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170720043809/http://altoadige.gelocal.it/sport/2011/05/20/news/quel-9-giugno-del-1976-gimondi-sul-gardeccia-costruisce-la-sua-rosa-1.4241004 |archive-date=2017-07-20 |url-status=dead }} The fourth classification, the young rider classification, was a ranking decided the same way as the general classification, but only considered neo-professional cyclists (in their first three years of professional racing).

The final classification, the team classification, awarded no jersey to its leaders. This was calculated by adding together points earned by each rider on the team during each stage through the intermediate sprints, the categorized climbs, stage finishes, etc. The team with the most points led the classification.

There were other minor classifications within the race, including the Campionato delle Regioni classification. The leader wore a blue jersey with colored vertical stripes ("maglia azzurra con banda tricolore verticale").{{cite web |url=http://www.giroditalia.it/eng/editions/1968-1977/ |title=1975 |date=2017 |work=Giro d'Italia |publisher=La Gazzetta dello Sport |access-date=13 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701114308/http://www.giroditalia.it/eng/editions/1968-1977/ |archive-date=1 July 2017 |url-status=live }} New to the race for the 1976 edition was the Fiat 131 classification, which was created in honour of Santisteban, who died during stage 1a. In all stages longer than {{convert|131|km|0|abbr=on}}, there would be a banner at that point in the stage to designate a special sprint. The winner of the sprint in each stage received a Fiat 131.

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{{Reflist|30em}}

{{1976 Super Prestige Pernod}}

{{Giro d'Italia}}

{{Cycling stage recaps|1976 Giro d'Italia|1a|11|12|22b}}

{{Giro d'Italia general classification winners}}

{{Authority control}}

1976

Giro d'Italia

Giro d'Italia

Giro d'Italia

Giro d'Italia

Category:1976 Super Prestige Pernod