1990 Giro d'Italia

1990 Giro stage results with running GC:

Friday, May 18: Stage 1, Bari 13 km individual time trial (cronometro)

1. Gianni Bugno: 15min 19sec
2. Thierry Marie @ 3sec
3. Lech Piasecki @ 9sec
4. Stephen Hodge @ 12sec
5. Angelo Lecchi @ 21sec
6. Joaquim Halupczok @ 22sec
7. Michel Vermote @ 24sec
8. Daniel Steiger, Roberto Pagnin, Alan Peiper @ 26sec

Saturday, May 19: Stage 2, Bari - Sala Consilina, 239 km

1. Giovanni Fidanza: 6hr 33min 14sec
2. Laurent Fignon s.t.
3. Charly Mottet s.t.
4. Piotr Ugrumov s.t.
5. Casimiro Moreda s.t.
6. Claudio Chiappucci s.t.
7. Stefano Colagè s.t.
8. Roberto Pagnin s.t.
9. Leonardo Sierra s.t.
10. Angelo Lecchi s.t.

GC after stage 2:

1. Gianni Bugno: 6hr 48min 33sec
2. Thierry Marie @ 1sec
3. Lech Piasecki @ 9sec
4. Stephen Hodge @ 12sec
5. Angelo Lecchi, Laurent Fignon @ 21sec
7. Joaquim Halupczok @ 22sec
8. Marco Lietti @ 23sec
9. Michel Vermote, Daniel Steiger, Roberto Pagnin @ 24sec

Sunday, May 20: Stage 3, Sala Consilina - Monte Vesuvio

Major ascent: Cessuta

1. Eduardo Chozas: 5hr 0min 8sec
2. Gianni Bugno @ 26sec
3. Acacio Da Silva @ 34sec
4. Piotr Ugrumov @ 42sec
5. Marino Lejarreta @ 48sec
6. Daniel Steiger @ 51sec
7. François Lemarchand @ 56sec
8. Claudio Chiappucci @ 59sec
9. Federico Echave s.t.
10. Marco Giovannetti s.t.
    

GC after Stage 3:

1. Gianni Bugno: 11hr 48min 59sec
2. Eduardo Chozas @ 43sec
3. Daniel Steiger @ 57sec
4. Laurent Fignon @ 1min 8sec
5. Joaquim Halupczok @ 1min 9sec
6. Marino Lejarreta @ 1min 10sec
7. Angelo Lecchi @ 1min 12sec
8. Claudio Chiappucci @ 1min 15sec
9. Zenon Jaskula @ 1min 17sec
10. Federico Echave @ 1min 18sec

Monday, May 21: Stage 4A, Ercolano - Cis Nola, 31 km

Major ascents: Chiunzi, Monte Vesuvio

1. Stefano Allocchio: 39min 26sec
2. Jan Schur s.t.
3. Daniele Gioia s.t.
4. Urs Freuler s.t.
5. Gianluca Bortolami s.t.
6. Giovanni Fidanza s.t.
7. Casimiro Moreda s.t.
8. Giuseppe Citterio s.t.
9. Michel Vermote s.t.
10. Phil Anderson s.t.

GC after Stage 4A:

1. Gianni Bugno

Monday, May 21: stage 4B, Cis Nola - Sora, 164 km

Major ascent: Arpino

1. Phil Anderson: 3hr 54min 16sec
2. Christophe Lavainne s.t.
3. Adriano Baffi @ 1sec
4. Mario Cipollini s.t.
5. Marco Vitali s.t.
6. Guido Bontempi s.t.
7. Giovanni Fidanza s.t.
8. Cesare Cipollini s.t.
9. Silvio Martinello s.t.
10. Marcel Wust s.t.

GC after Stage 4B:

1. Gianni Bugno: 16hr 22min 42sec
2. Eduardo Chozas @ 43sec
3. Daniel Steiger @ 57sec
4. Laurent Fignon @ 1min 8sec
5. Joaquim Halopczok @ 1min 9sec
6. Marino Lejarreta @ 1min 10sec
7. Angelo Lecchi @ 1min 12sec
8. Claudio Chiappucci @ 1min 15sec
9. Zenon Jaskula @ 1min 17sec
10. Federico Echave @ 1min 18sec

Tuesday, May 22: Stage 5, Sora - Teramo, 233 km

Major ascents: Ovindoli, Capanelle, Castellalto

1. Fabrizio Convalle: 5hr 52min 11sec
2. Andrei Tchmil @ 4sec
3. Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle s.t.
4. Francesco Rossignoli s.t.
5. Roberto Pagnin s.t.
6. Massimo Podenzana s.t.
7. Rodolfo Massi s.t.
8. Maurizio Vandelli s.t.
9. Francesco Cesarini s.t.
10. Mario Chiesa s.t.

GC after Stage 5:

1. Gianni Bugno: 22hr 15min 35sec
2. Eduardo Chozas @ 37sec
3. Daniel Steiger @ 57sec
4. Laurent Fignon @ 1min 6sec
5. Joaquim Halupczok @ 1min 9sec
6. Marino Lejarreta @ 1min 10sec
7. Angelo Lecchi @ 1min 12sec
8. Claudio Chiappucci @ 1min 15sec
9. Zenon Jaskula @ 1min 17sec
10. Federico Echave @ 1min 18sec

Wednesday, May 23: Stage 6, Teramo - Fabriano, 200 km

Major ascents: Casale, Sasso Tetto, Colle Giglioni

1. Luca Gelfi: 5hr 26min 12sec
2. Massimo Ghirotto s.t.
3. Phil Anderson s.t.
4. José-Luis Villanueva @ 6sec
5. Giuseppe Saronni @ 7sec
6. Stefano Colagè s.t.
7. Dimitri Konyshev s.t.
8. Laurent Fignon s.t.
9. Claudio Chiappucci s.t.
10. Gert-Jan Theunisse s.t.

GC after Stage 6:

1. Gianni Bugno: 27hr 41min 58sec
2. Eduardo Chozas @ 37sec
3. Danie Steiger @ 57sec
4. Laurent Fignon @ 1min 8sec
5. Joaquim Halupczok @ 1min 9sec
6. Marino Lejarreta @ 1mi 10sec
7. Angelo Lecchi @ 1min 12sec
8. Claudio Chiappucci @ 1min 15sec
9. Zenon Jaskula @ 1min 17sec
10. Federico Echave @ 1min 18sec

Thursday, May 24: Stage 7, Fabriano - Valombrosa, 197 km

Major ascents: Valico Scheggia di Anghiari, Vallombrosa

1. Gianni Bugno: 5hr 15min 23sec
2. Piotr Ugrumov s.t.
3. Charly Mottet @ 3sec
4. Marino Lejarreta s.t.
5. Federico Echave s.t.
6. Joaquim Halupczok s.t.
7. Daniel Steiger s.t.
8. Franco Chioccioli s.t.
9. Eric Boyer @ 9sec
10. Michele Moro @ 50sec

GC after Stage 7:

1. Gianni Bugno: 32hr 57min 9sec
2. Daniel Steiger @ 1min 12sec
3. Jaoquim Halupczok @ 1min 24sec
4. Marino Lejarreta @ 1min 25sec
5. Federico Echave @ 1min 33sec
6. Piotr Ugrumov @ 1min 40sec
7. Charly Mottet @ 1min 47sec
8. Franco Chioccioli @ 2min 0sec
9. Eric Boyer @ 2min 3sec
10. Eduardo Chozas @ 2min 12sec

Friday, May 25: Stage 8, Reggello - Marina di Pietrasanta, 188 km

Major ascent: Sugame

1. Stefano Allocchio: 4hr 32min 25sec
2. Mario Cipollini s.t.
3. Guido Bontempi s.t.
4. Giovanni fidanza s.t.
5. Antonio Fanelli s.t.
6. Paolo Rosola s.t.
7. Giovanni Strazzer s.t.
8. Marcel Wust s.t.
9. Giuseppe Citterio s.t.
10. Gianluca Bortolami s.t.

GC after Stage 8:

1. Gianni Bugno: 37hr 29min 34sec
2. Daniel Steiger @ 1min 12sec
3. Joaquim Halupczok @ 1min 24sec
4. Marino Lejarreta @ 1min 25sec
5. Federico Echave @ 1min 33sec
6. Piotr Ugrumov @ 1min 40sec
7. Charly Mottet @ 1min 47sec
8. Franco Chioccioli @ 2min 0sec
9. Eric Boyer @ 2min 3sec
10. Eduardo Chozas @ 2min 12sec

Saturday, May 26: Stage 9, La Spezia - Langhirano, 176 km

Major ascents: Lagestrello, Ticchiano, Cozzano, Fragno

1. Vladimir Poulnikov: 5hr 4min 15sec
2. Dimitri Konyshev @ 1min 39sec
3. Phil Anderson s.t.
4. Claudio Chiappucci s.t.
5. Eduardo Chozas @ 2min 26sec
6. Massimiliano Lelli s.t.
7. Marino Lejarreta s.t.
8. Andrea Chiurato s.t.
9. Angelo Lecchi s.t.
10. Emanuele Bombini s.t.

GC after Stage 9:

1. Gianni Bugno: 42hr 36min 15sec
2. Joaquim Halupczok @ 1min 24sec
3. Eduardo Chozas, Marino Lejarreta @ 1min 25sec
5. Federico Echave @ 1min 33sec
6. Charly Mottet @ 1min 47sec
7. Claudio Chiappucci @ 1min 58sec
8. Franco Chioccioli @ 2min 0sec
9. Piotr Ugrumov @ 2min 13sec
10. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 2min 20sec

Sunday, May 27: Stage 10, Castello Grinzane Cavour - Cuneo 68 km individual time trial (cronometro)

1. Luca Gelfi: 1hr 31min 46sec
2. Gianni Bugno @ 6sec
3. Lech Piasecki @ 57sec
4. Phil Anderson @ 1min 40sec
5. Marco Giovannetti @ 1min 45sec
6. Thierry Marie @ 1min 50sec
7. Charly Mottet @ 2min 28sec
8. Gérard Rue @ 2min 55sec
9. Stephen Hodge, Vladimir Poulnikov @ 3min 0sec

GC after Stage 10:

1. Gianni Bugno: 44hr 8min 7sec
2. Marco Giovannetti @ 4min 8sec
3. Charly Mottet @ 4min 9sec
4. Federico Echave @ 4min 41sec
5. Joaquim Halupczok @ 5min 6sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 5min 14sec
7. Claudio Chiappucci @ 5min 55sec
8. Marino Lejarreta @ 6min 2sec
9. Piotr Ugrumov @ 6min 43sec
10. Flavio Giupponi @ 6min 47sec

Monday, May 28: Stage 11, Cuneo - Lodi, 241 km

1. Adriano Baffi: 6hr 19min 7sec
2. Phil Anderson s.t.
3. Jean-Paul Van Poppel s.t.
4. Marcel Wust s.t.
5. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
6. Paolo Rosola s.t.
7. Roberto Pagnin s.t.
8. Giuseppe Citterio s.t.
9. Guido Bontempi s.t.
10. Philippe Casado s.t.

GC after Stage 11:

1. Gianni Bugno: 50hr 27min 14sec
2. Marco Giovannetti @ 4min 8sec
3. Charly Mottet @ 4min 9sec
4. Federico Echave @ 4min 41sec
5. Joaquim Halupczok @ 5min 6sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 5min 14sec
7. Claudio Chiappucci @ 5min 55sec
8. Marino Lejarreta @ 6min 2sec
9. Piotr Ugrumov @ 6min 43sec
10. Flavio Giupponi @ 6min 47sec

Tuesday, May 29: Stage 12, Brescia - Beselga di Pinè

Major ascents: Vigolo Vattaro, Vetriolo

1. Eric Boyer: 4hr 55min 16sec
2. Gianni Bugno @ 33sec
3. Joaquim Halupczok s.t.
4. Charly Mottet s.t.
5. Piotr Ugrumov s.t.
6. Marcio Giovannetti s.t.
7. Franco Chioccioli s.t.
8. Federico Echave s.t.
9. Marino Lejarreta s.t.
10. Fabrice Philippot s.t.

GC after Stage 12:

1. Gianni Bugno: 55hr 22min 55sec
2. Marco Giovannetti @ 4min 16sec
3. Charly Mottet @ 4min 17sec
4. Federico Echave @ 4min 49sec
5. Joaquim Halupczok @ 5min 10sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 5min 22sec
7. Marino Lejarreta @ 6min 10sec
8. Piotr Ugrumov @ 6min 51sec
9. Flavio Giupponi @ 6min 55sec
10. Eduardo Chozas @ 7min 11sec

Wednesday, May 30: Stage 13, Baselga di Pinè - Udine, 224 km

1. Mario Cipollini: 5hr 43min 35sec
2. Djamolidin Abdoujaparov s.t.
3. Alessio Di Basco s.t.
4. Paolo Rosola s.t.
5. Giovanni Fidanza s.t.
6. Guido Bontempi s.t.
7. Marcel Wust s.t.
8. Phil Anderson s.t.
9. Jean-Paul Van Poppel s.t.
10. Adriano Baffi s.t.

GC after Stage 13:

1. Gianni Bugno: 61hr 6min 30sec
2. Marco Giovannetti @ 4min 16sec
3. Charly Mottet @ 4min 17sec
4. Federico Echave @ 4min 49sec
5. Joaquim Halupczok @ 5min 10sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 5min 22sec
7. Marino Lejarreta @ 6min 10sec
8. Piotr Ugrumov @ 6min 51sec
9. Flavio Giupponi @ 6min 55sec
10. Eduardo Chozas @ 7min 11sec

Thursday, May 31: Stage 14, Klangenfurt circuit, 164 km

1. Allan Peiper: 4hr 2min 26sec
2. Pascal Poisson s.t.
3. Massimo Ghirotto @ 13sec
4. Henri Abadie s.t.
5. Roberto Pagnin s.t.
6. Dimitri Konyshev s.t.
7. Massimiliano Lelli s.t.
8. Alberto Volpi s.t.
9. Rolf Jaermann s.t.
10. François Lemarchand s.t.

GC after Stage 14:

1. Gianni Bugno: 65hr 9min 17sec
2. Marco Giovannetti @ 4min 16sec
3. Charly Mottet @ 4min 17sec
4. Federico Echave @ 4min 49sec
5. Joaquim Halopczok @ 5min 10sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 5min 22sec
7. Marino Lejarreta @ 6min 10sec
8. Piotr Ugrumov @ 6min 51sec
9. Flavio Giupponi @ 6min 59sec
10. Eduardo Chozas @ 7min 11sec

Friday, June 1: Stage 15, Velden - Dobbiaco, 225 km

Major ascents: Croce Carnico, Sella Valcada, Sappada, Croce di Comelico

1. Eric Boyer: 6hr 16min 14sec
2. Jon Unzaga s.t.
3. Piotr Ugrumov s.t.
4. Leonardo Sierra s.t.
5. Massimo Ghirotto s.t.
6. Eduardo Chozas s.t.
7. Franco Chioccioli @ 9sec
8. Henri Abadie @ 55sec
9. Acacio Da Silva s.t.
10. Angelo Lecchi s.t.

GC after Stage 15:

1. Gianni Bugno: 71hr 26min 16sec
2. Marco Giovannetti @ 4min 16sec
3. Charly Mottet @ 4min 17sec
4. Federico Echave @ 4min 49sec
5. Joaquim Halopczok @ 5min 10sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 5min 22sec
7. Piotr Ugrumov @ 5min 52sec
8. Marino Lejarreta @ 6min 10sec
9. Eduardo Chozas @ 6min 16sec
10. Flavio Giupponi @ 6min 55sec

Saturday, June 2: Stage 16, Dobbiaco - Passo Pordoi, 171 km

Major ascents: Valparola, Gardena, Sella, Pordoi, Marmolada, Pordoi

1. Charly Mottet: 5hr 29min 24sec
2. Gianni Bugno s.t.
3. Franco Chioccioli @ 2min 16sec
4. Marco Giovannetti s.t.
5. Maurizio Vandelli @ 3min 38sec
6. Dimitri Konyshev @ 4min 6sec
7. Federico Echave @ 4min 40sec
8. Franco Vona @ 4min 47sec
9. Leonardo Sierra @ 4min 59sec
10. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 5min 0sec

GC after Stage 16:

1. Gianni Bugno: 70hr 55min 42sec
2. Charly Mottet @ 4min 13sec
3. Marco Giovannetti @ 6min 40sec
4. Federico Echave @ 9min 37sec
5. Franco Chioccioli @ 10min 6sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 10min 30sec
7. Eduardo Chozas @ 13min 7sec
8. Marino Lejarreta @ 13min 11sec
9. Piotr Ugrumov @ 13min 12sec
10. Massimiliano Lelli @ 15min 8sec

Sunday, June 3: Stage 17, Moena - Aprica, 223 km

1. Leonardo Sierra: 7hr 16min 58sec
2. Alberto Volpi @ 52sec
3. Eric Boyer @ 1min 26sec
4. Gianni Bugno @ 2min 10sec
5. Franco Chioccioli s.t.
6. Charly Mottet s.t.
7. Piotr Ugrumov s.t.
8. Dimitri Konyshev s.t.
9. Massimiliano Lelli s.t.
10. Federico Echave s.t.

GC after Stage 17:

1. Gianni Bugno: 84hr 14min 50sec
2. Charly Mottet @ 4min 13sec
3. Marco Giovannetti @ 6min 40sec
4. Federico Echave @ 9min 37sec
5. Franco Chioccioli @ 10min 6sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 10min 30sec
7. Marino Lejarreta @ 13min 11sec
8. Piotr Ugrumov @ 13min 12sec
9. Eduardo Chozas @ 14min 24sec
10. Massimiliano Lelli @ 15min 8sec

Monday, June 4: Stage 18, Aprica - Gallarate, 180 km

1. Adriano Baffi: 4hr 45min 48sec
2. Mario Cipollini s.t.
3. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov s.t.
4. Phil Anderson s.t.
5. Giovanni Strazzer s.t.
6. Paolo Rosola s.t.
7. Guido Bontempi s.t.
8. Giovanni Fidanza s.t.
9. Jean-Paul Van Poppel s.t.
10. Stefano Allocchio s.t.

GC after Stage 18:

1. Gianni Bugno: 89hr 0min 38sec
2. Charly Mottet @ 4min 13sec
3. Marco Giovannetti @ 6min 40sec
4. Federico Echave @ 9min 37sec
5. Franco Chioccioli @ 10min 6sec
6. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 10min 30sec
7. Marino Lejarreta @ 13min 11sec
8. Eduardo Chozas @ 14min 24sec
9. Massimiliano Lelli @ 15min 8sec

Tuesday, June 5: Stage 19, Gallarate - Varese (Sacro Monte) 39 km individual time trial (cronometro)

Major ascent: Varese (Sacro Monte)

1. Gianni Bugno: 58min 4sec
2. Marino Lejarreta @ 1min 20sec
3. Luca Gelfi @ 1min 22sec
4. Claudio Chiappucci @ 1min 33sec
5. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 1min 55sec
6. Massimiliano Lelli @ 2min 6sec
7. Gianluca Pierobon @ 2min 11sec
8. Pascal Poisson s.t.
9. Charly Mottet @ 2min 20sec
10. Marco Giovannetti @ 2min 21sec
11. Franco Chioccioli @ 2min 30sec
12. Greg LeMond @ 2min 36sec

GC after Stage 19:

1. Gianni Bugno: 89hr 58min 42sec
2. Charly Mottet @ 6min 33sec
3. Marco Giovannetti @ 9min 1sec
4. Vladimir Poulnikov @ 12min 25sec
5. Federico Echave @ 12min 29sec
6. Franco Chioccioli @ 12min 36sec
7. Marino Lejarreta @ 14min 31sec
8. Piotr Ugrumov @ 17min 2sec
9. Massimiliano Lelli @ 17min 14sec
10. Leonardo Sierra @ 19min 12sec

Wednesday, June 6: 20th and Final Stage, Milano 90 km circuit race

1. Mario Cipollini: 1hr 52min 26sec
2. Adriano Baffi s.t.
3. Giovanni Strazzer s.t.
4. Giovanni Fidanza s.t.
5. Roberto Pagnin s.t.
6. Rolf Sørensen s.t.
7. Silvio Martinelli s.t.
8. Paolo Cimini s.t.
9. Casimiro Moreda s.t.
10. Francesco Rossignoli s.t.

1990 Giro d'Italia Complete Final General Classification

The Story of the 1990 Giro d'Italia

This excerpt is from "The Story of the Giro d'Italia", Volume 2. If you enjoy it we hope you will consider purchasing the book, either print, eBook or audiobook. The Amazon link here will make the purchase easy.

The 1990 edition started deep in the south, in Bari, and made a giant Z on the Italian map as it headed north. It worked its way to the western coast of Tuscany and then to Cuneo in Piedmont; then a nearly due eastward march all the way to Klagenfurt in Austria before the final week in the Dolomites and the Alps. It was a 20-stage race totaling 3,450 kilometers, just 32 kilometers longer than in 1989.

Who were the favorites? 1989 Tour winner and reigning World Road Champion LeMond came with his powerful new “Z” team. So far that spring, he hadn’t notched any notable placings and had come to the Giro to train for the Tour.
And there was the winner of 1989 Dauphiné Libéré, Charly Mottet, who had just won the Tour of Romandie and was turning into one of France’s finest riders.
Fignon had come into the start of the 1990 season as the number one world-ranked cyclist, but by the time the Giro rolled around, he was again struggling. After a lackluster Classics season he arrived at the Giro feeling his form was questionable.

Marco Giovannetti had just finished winning the Vuelta, but he would surely be too tired to contest the Giro, especially against Italy’s newest strongman, Gianni Bugno.
Bugno had entered his time of grace. In the spring of 1990 he had already won Milan–San Remo and the Giro del Trentino. The first race required speed and power, the second, raced in the Dolomites, was a test of climbing ability. Bugno was a complete rider and Fignon tipped him as the favorite.

Bugno blistered the 13-kilometer prologue at a scorching 50.92 kilometers per hour. He had laid down the law and taken the maglia rosa at the first opportunity. It was not as if there were no competitors. Thierry Marie, a specialist who had a habit of winning Tour de France prologues, finished 3 seconds slower.

But the climbing? Could he climb with the Grand Tour men whose form was carefully cultivated to peak in May? Trying to take some of the pressure off, Bugno said he would just try to take each stage as it came, but he said he was reasonably sure his adventure in pink would soon be over.

Gianni Bugno in pink with his pink Moser bike with Francesco Moser.

He was saying one thing but planning another. Two days later Bugno laid to rest any questions about his abilities in the mountains when the Giro ascended Mount Vesuvius. Waiting until the road got steep, Bugno took off alone to chase down the day’s earlier escapees, a group that included climber Eduardo Chozas. No one reacted to Bugno’s bold move, and in a flash he was up the road with a good gap. He caught all but Chozas, but Chozas’ 26-second lead was small enough to keep Bugno in pink. It was a surprising expenditure of energy so early in a Grand Tour. He was riding as if he knew how much better he was than the others.

Stage five, in Abruzzo, took the riders through a badly lit tunnel where several riders, including Fignon, crashed. Bugno and his team emerged from the tunnel unhurt and four minutes ahead of Fignon. Doing the honorable thing, Bugno’s Chateaux d’Ax squad slowed things down until Fignon, suffering from a painful dislocated hip, could catch up.

Gert-Jan Theunisse had tested positive for high levels of testosterone in the Flèche Wallonne (this was not his first positive) and during the Giro, the reconfirmation of that test became known. At the start of stage six, the riders staged a strike, saying they would not ride if Theunisse were part of the peloton. The seemingly friendless Theunisse promised to ride quietly. And so he did, eventually finishing the Giro fifteenth, almost a half-hour down on the winner.

The Giro started in earnest with stage six, a northwest run from Fabriano in Umbria up to Vallombrosa, just east of Florence. The country is hilly and the final climb up to Vallombrosa is a twenty-kilometer ascent with sustained sections of twelve percent gradient.

Bugno kept the pressure on almost from the gun, shattering the peloton, and of the Giro contenders, only Mottet, Lejarreta, Chioccioli and Piotr Ugrumov could stay with him. After doing a huge amount of work, incredibly, Bugno out-sprinted Ugrumov for the stage win. Fignon lost 78 seconds while LeMond dropped a quarter of an hour.

Bugno wins in Vallombrosa

The General Classification now stood thus:
1. Gianni Bugno
2. Daniel Steiger @ 1 minute 12 seconds
3. Joachim Halupczok @ 1 minute 24 seconds
4. Marino Lejarreta @ 1 minute 25 seconds
5. Federico Echave @ 1 minute 33 seconds
6. Piotr Ugrumov @ 1 minute 40 seconds

The next day in the Apennines made history. When Vladimir Poulnikov crossed the finish line first at the end of stage eight, he became the first Russian (OK, until 1991, Soviet Union) rider to win a Giro stage. His compatriot Dimitri Konyshev was second. Times were changing. The day’s rainy weather proved too much for Fignon’s hip and the Frenchman abandoned. LeMond, still not finding his form, lost a half-hour.

An estimated quarter-million fans lined the Piedmont road between Castello di Grinzane and Cuneo to watch Italy’s hero demolish his opposition in the stage nine individual time trial. Bugno didn’t win, headwinds came up late in the day when the top riders rode, but his second place to Luca Gelfi after 68 kilometers of solo riding was enough to further distance himself from the rest of the field and to send the tifosi into ecstasies of joy.

After a couple of days of climbing and a long time trial, Bugno didn’t seem to have any weaknesses:
1. Gianni Bugno
2. Marco Giovannetti @ 4 minutes 8 seconds
3. Charly Mottet @ 4 minutes 9 seconds
4. Federico Echave @ 4 minutes 41 seconds
5. Joachim Halupczok @ 5 minutes 6 seconds

As the peloton made its way to its stage fifteen appointment with the Dolomites, Greg LeMond started showing signs that things weren’t hopeless. He took a shot at an intermediate sprint, and then in stage fourteen, went off on a break that at one point gained twelve minutes. He was caught, but the legs were coming back. Too late for the Giro, but July and the Tour weren’t far off.

The first day in the Dolomites had six major climbs: the Valparola, Gardena, Sella, Pordoi, Marmolada and then another trip up Pordoi. Charly Mottet provided all of the energy of the day, attacking on the Marmolada, unhappily taking along a watchful Bugno who easily matched the Frenchman’s efforts. Then Bugno, in another display of power and confidence, insisted upon leading the pair to the crest of the pass. The two worked together on the Pordoi before Bugno gifted the Frenchman the stage win.

Charly Mottet wins on the Pordoi, Bugno is a couple of lengths back.

At this point Bugno seemed invulnerable. Halupczok, 1989’s World Amateur Champion, had probably done more than his 22-year-old body could take, and abandoned his miracle Giro ride with an inflamed knee. That autumn heart problems forced the young Pole to retire from cycling. He died of a heart attack in 1994, which some blamed on his use of the new drug EPO (more about this later). This allegation has no proof, but in the early 1990s seemingly healthy young endurance athletes started dying in their sleep. After a bad crash, Urs Zimmermann also had to retire.

The second mountain stage, which included the Mortirolo ascent for the first time, changed nothing: the top riders finished together. Bugno was effortlessly leading the Giro with Mottet 4 minutes 13 seconds behind.

That left only the final 39-kilometer time trial, with its uphill finish on Sacro Monte in Varese. It was a wet, windy day. Bugno, who had started the day with both front and rear disc wheels, soon regretted the choice. When he flatted, a bike change let him rectify the equipment error. Bugno won the stage with Lejarreta second, 1 minute 20 seconds back. LeMond’s ever improving form showed with his twelfth place, but nothing like his second place in the final time trial the year before.

As Mario Cipollini won the final stage, Bugno joined the elite club of riders who had won the Pink Jersey on the first stage and worn it all the way to the end. Only Costante Girardengo (1919), Alfredo Binda (1927), and Eddy Merckx (1973) had been able to wear the jersey from “sunrise to sunset”. Critics said that Bugno had prevailed against a weak field with only Mottet able to provide real competition. The field may not have been as strong as in previous or future editions, but nevertheless, Bugno had simply crushed 198 of his fellow professional bicycle racers.

One of those greats called it quits. Giuseppe Saronni retired after his 45th place. He had a long list of impressive victories that included two Giri (1979, 1983) and a Rainbow Jersey (1982). He went on to be a successful team director, managing the Italian Lampre squad.

LeMond went from 105th in the Giro to 1990 Tour de France champion.

One of runner-up Mottet’s soigneurs, Willy Voet, wrote that Mottet insisted on riding without dope. Given the startling frankness of Voet’s memoir, one has to assume Voet’s assertion was true. Voet wrote that during the rare times Mottet took corticosteroids for therapeutic purposes (while his competitors were using them to improve their performances) he “would breathe fire”, showing that Mottet’s scruples forced him to leave a lot on the table. Voet said that because of the rampant doping around him, Charly Mottet “simply did not have the career that he merited.”

Final 1990 Giro d’Italia General Classification:
1. Gianni Bugno (Chateau d’Ax-Salotti): 91 hours 51 minutes 8 seconds
2. Charly Mottet (RMO) @ 6 minutes 33 seconds
3. Marco Giovannetti (SEUR) @ 9 minute 1 second
4. Vladimir Poulnikov (Alfa Lum) @ 12 minutes 19 seconds
5. Federico Echave (Clas) @ 12 minutes 25 seconds

Climbers’ Competition:
1. Claudio Chiappucci (Carrera): 74 points
2. Maurizio Vandelli (Gis-Benotto): 56
3. Gianni Bugno (Chateau d’Ax-Salotti): 48

Points Competition:
1. Gianni Bugno (Chateau d’Ax-Salotti): 195 points
2. Phil Anderson (TVM): 176
3. Mario Cipollini (Del Tongo): 176

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