A spring one-day race in Emilia-Romagna that rewards sharp positioning and late acceleration.
G.P. Emilia
G.P. Emilia is a punchy Italian one-day race where the finale often comes down to positioning, timing, and who can handle the final kick.
- Location
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- When
- Fifth Sunday in March
- Course
- One Day
- Most recent winner
- 🇲🇽 Isaac del Toro (2025)
- Also known as
- Giro dell'Emilia
- Category
- Men’s Continental
About G.P. Emilia
G.P. Emilia is a men's one-day bike race held in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. Run in late March, it sits in the early-season calendar window when form is still emerging and the parcours favors riders who can handle short, sharp efforts.
Also known as: Giro dell'Emilia
This is the kind of race where positioning matters more than raw power. The roads around Bologna and the Emilian hills reward riders who can read the closing kilometers, survive repeated accelerations, and time a late move. It is not a monument, but it is a useful proving ground for puncheurs and classics riders still finding their legs in March, and the racing often tightens in the final hour.
G.P. Emilia winners
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 🇲🇽Isaac del Toro |
| 2024 | 🇸🇮Tadej Pogacar |
| 2023 | 🇸🇮Primoz Roglic |
| 2022 | 🇪🇸Enric Mas |
| 2021 | 🇸🇮Primoz Roglic |
| 2020 | Aleksandr Vlasov |
| 2019 | 🇸🇮Primoz Roglic |
| 2018 | 🇮🇹Alessandro De Marchi |
| 2017 | 🇮🇹Giovanni Visconti |
2026 edition canceled
G.P. Emilia was not held in 2026. The one-day race had been listed for March 29, but it is not on the UCI's 2026 calendar or among the 2026 races of its organizer, GS Emilia. The UCI calendar lists it for March 29, 2027.
G.P. Emilia route
The course typically features rolling terrain with short climbs and technical descents in the final third. Expect a parcours that punishes poor positioning and rewards riders who can handle repeated accelerations rather than sustained climbing. The finale often comes down to a reduced group sprint or a late attack from someone who can time the final kick. Weather in late March can add another variable, with rain turning the technical sections into a positioning lottery. This is not a race won by the strongest climber or the fastest sprinter, but by the rider who reads the closing kilometers best and still has a match to burn when it matters.
What shapes the race
San Luca wall
The brutal 2.1 km finishing climb at 10.6% average with sections reaching 18%, tackled up to five times in the finale. Pure explosive climbing decides the race.
Bologna city circuit
The final circuits loop through the city before tackling San Luca repeatedly, creating a war of attrition among the climbers.
Il Lombardia preview
Positioned days before Il Lombardia, the race attracts top climbers tuning their form for the final Monument.
Signature landmarks
- Summit finish
San Luca
2.1 km at 10.6% average with sections at 18%. The climb to the Sanctuary of the Madonna di San Luca is the race's heart, tackled multiple times in the finale.
- Landmark
Sanctuary of Madonna di San Luca
The 18th-century hilltop basilica above Bologna that serves as the race's iconic summit finish.
- Circuit
Bologna city loop
The final circuits through the city before each ascent of San Luca create a rhythm of recovery and explosion.
History
Memorable editions
- 2019
Roglic masters San Luca
Primoz Roglic attacked in the final kilometer, chasing down Michael Woods before soloing away for a commanding victory.
- 2023
Roglic's farewell triple
Roglic won his third edition by attacking with 500 m to go, beating Pogacar and Simon Yates, on the same day he confirmed his departure from Jumbo-Visma.
- 2024
Pogacar untouchable
Tadej Pogacar confirmed his dominance of the autumn classics with a commanding victory over Thomas Pidcock on San Luca.
Iconic victories
Costante Girardengo
Five wins (1918 to 1925), the all-time record. Italy's first campionissimo dominated the race in its early decades.
Primoz Roglic
Three wins (2019, 2021, 2023). The modern master of San Luca, his explosive climbing style is perfectly suited to the steep finale.
Fausto Coppi
Three wins. Il Campionissimo added the Giro dell'Emilia to his vast collection of Italian one-day victories.
Tadej Pogacar
Won in 2024 as part of his autumn classics dominance, confirming San Luca as a stage for generational talent.
Eras and records
First held in 1909, with over 110 editions. The San Luca climb has defined the race's identity since the course was redesigned around it.
Most wins
Costante Girardengo, 5 victories.
Most wins (modern era)
Primoz Roglic, 3 (2019, 2021, 2023).
First edition
1909. One of Italy's oldest one-day races.