2016 Strade Bianche

The tenth edition of the Strade Bianche road cycling race was held on 5 March 2016, in Tuscany, Italy. Swiss Fabian Cancellara concluded his third win in the race. The race covered 176 km (109 mi), starting and finishing in Siena. It was part of the 2016 UCI Europe Tour, a 1.HC-ranked event.[1]

For the women's race, see 2016 Strade Bianche Women.
2016 Strade Bianche
2016 UCI Europe Tour
Race details
Dates5 March 2016
Stages1
Distance176 km (109.4 mi)
Winning time4h 39' 35"
Results
  Winner  Fabian Cancellara (SWI) (Trek–Segafredo)
  Second  Zdeněk Štybar (CZE) (Etixx–Quick-Step)
  Third  Gianluca Brambilla (ITA) (Etixx–Quick-Step)

Route
2016 route: 176 km with nine sectors of strade bianche.

The race started and finished in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Siena,[2] marking a shift from previous editions, which started in San Gimignano. Because of its new start location, the distance is scaled back to 176 kilometres, run entirely within the southern Tuscan province of Siena. The Strade Bianche is particularly renowned for its sectors of white gravel roads (strade bianche or sterrati), which comprise large sections of the route.

The course ran over the hilly terrain of the Chianti region and included nine sectors and a total of 52.8 km (32.8 mi) of dirt road.[2] The first sector was addressed just 11 km after the start; the longest and most arduous sectors were the ones in Lucignano d’Asso (11.9 km) and Monte Sante Marie (11.5 km).[3] The last stretch of gravel road came at 12 km (7 mi) from the finish in Siena.[4] The race finished on Siena's illustrious Piazza del Campo, after a narrow ascent on the roughly-paved Via Santa Caterina in the heart of the medieval city, with steep stretches of up to 16 % gradient.[2][3]

One of the strade bianche, pictured during the "Eroica" granfondo.
Sectors of strade bianche[5]
Sector Name Kilometre marker Length (km) Category
1 Vidritta 11.1 to 13.1 2.1 *
2 Comune di Murlo 39.8 to 45.8 5.5 *
3 Lucignano d'Asso 67.8 to 79.7 11.9 ***
4 Radi Bianche 80.6 to 90.2 8 [...]
5 San Martino in Grania 103.6 to 113 9.5 [...]
6 Monte Sante Marie 122 to 133.4 11.5 *****
7 Monteaperti 151.7 to 152.5 0.8 *
8 Colle Pinzuto 156.6 to 159 2.4 ****
9 Le Tolfe 162.7 to 164 1.1 ***

Pre-race favourites

Previous year's laureate, Czech Zdeněk Štybar, lined up for the 2016 event. World champion Peter Sagan, runner-up in 2013 and 2014, and twofold winner Fabian Cancellara expressed they targeted a victory in the Strade Bianche.[6] Other riders among the favorites were Vincenzo Nibali, Alejandro Valverde, Michał Kwiatkowski and Greg Van Avermaet.[7]

Participating teams

18 teams took part in the race: twelve UCI WorldTeams and six UCI Professional Continental teams – totaling 144 riders.[8] Each team had a maximum of eight riders:[9]

UCI WorldTeams

UCI Professional Continental teams

Results
Race result[10]
Rank Rider Team Time
1  Fabian Cancellara (SUI) Trek–Segafredo 4h 39' 35"
2  Zdeněk Štybar (CZE) Etixx–Quick-Step s.t.
3  Gianluca Brambilla (ITA) Etixx–Quick-Step + 4"
4  Peter Sagan (SVK) Tinkoff + 13"
5  Petr Vakoč (CZE) Etixx–Quick-Step + 34"
6  Greg Van Avermaet (BEL) BMC Racing Team + 37"
7  Diego Ulissi (ITA) Lampre–Merida + 41"
8  Tiesj Benoot (BEL) Lotto–Soudal s.t.
9  Lars Petter Nordhaug (NOR) Team Sky s.t.
10  Alejandro Valverde (ESP) Movistar Team + 50"

See also

References
  1. "Strade Bianche 2016 - Classic". ProCyclingStats. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  2. "Siena start for Strade Bianche in 2016". Cycling News. Immediate Media Company. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  3. "Strade Bianche, da Siena a Siena lo spettacolo è triplo". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). RCS Media Group. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  4. Farrand, Stephen. "Strade Bianche Preview: Cancellara faces Sagan, Nibali, Stybar and Valverde". CyclingNews. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  5. "Strade Bianche con vista sull'arcobaleno". gazzetta.it (in Italian). RCS Media Group. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  6. "Cancellara targets a third victory at Strade Bianche". Cycling News. Immediate Media Company. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  7. "Sagan, Cancellara, Phinney and Nibali headline Strade Bianche". Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  8. "18 teams announced for 2016 Strade Bianche". Cycling News. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  9. "2016 Strade Bianche - Startlist". FirstCycling. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  10. "10th Strade Bianche (1.HC)". Pro Cycling Stats. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
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