Giro-E Plugs Into the Giro d’Italia

Enel X is the title sponsor, together with partners Pinarello and Tag Heuer. The Giro-E takes place a few hours before Italy’s top cycling event, and involves five teams of two riding e-bikes along the same route. The new Giro-E sustainable cycling competition was welcomed enthusiastically by illustrious fans like actor Patrick Dempsey, who joined in the electric race along with a number of other celebrities.

Among the connected initiatives is a competition in which 36 pink jerseys are at stake: the public is involved at every stage, taking part in the draw by enrolling at the Enel stands. On the evening before the stage, the amateur contestants take part in an informational meeting on the e-bikes’ technical characteristics and the details of the route.  The next morning they pedal along the stage, stopping to charge their batteries halfway through and crossing the finish line before the professional riders, whose arrival they can watch a few hours later.

This year the e-bikes were provided by market leading company Pinarello. It was founded by cyclist and entrepreneur Giovanni Pinarello, also known as Nani, the winner of the famous “maglia nera” (the black jersey awarded to the cyclist coming in last in the Giro d’Italia) and a contemporary of the great champions Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali. Pinarello’s Nytro road  racer has a carbon fiber frame, weighs just 13 kilos and is equipped with an electric motor with lithium-ion batteries. It provides assistance up to 25 km/h and has a nominal maximum power output of 250 W.