 Overview of the stages: route clockwise from Milan, down
to Pescara, over to Rome, and up to Bergamo | ||||||||||
| Race details | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dates | 19 May – 4 June 1912 | |||||||||
| Stages | 9 | |||||||||
| Distance | 2,439.6 km (1,516 mi) | |||||||||
| Winning time | 100h 02' 57" | |||||||||
| Results | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
The 1912 Giro d'Italia was the fourth edition of the Giro d'Italia, a Grand Tour set up and sponsored by the newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport. The race began on 19 May in Milan with a stage that stretched 398.8 km (248 mi) to Padua. The race was composed of nine stages that covered a total distance of 2,733.6 km (1,699 mi). The race came to a close in Bergamo on 4 June after a 235 km (146 mi) stage. The race was won by the Atala-Dunlop team that finished with Carlo Galetti, Eberardo Pavesi, and Giovanni Micheletto. Second and third respectively were Peugeot and Gerbi.
The calculation of the general classification changed from the previous editions of the race, shifting to a team-based event, with each team only allowed four riders. Points were awarded to teams based upon winning the stage, having multiple riders in the top four places in each stage, and finishing the stage with a minimum of three riders. A total of fourteen teams participated, with 56 riders registering and 54 officially starting the race.
Micheletto won the opening stage of the race to give Atala-Dunlop the first lead in the race. Despite two consecutive stage wins by Legnano riders, Atala-Dunlop still retained the lead going into the fourth stage. The fourth leg was held in rainy conditions that caused some rivers to overflow on the course and riders to take the wrong roads for extensive distances; this led to the cancellation of the stage and addition of a ninth leg that drew some of its route from the Giro di Lombardia. An Atala-Dunlop rider won the fifth stage, but the team lost the lead to Peugeot for one stage. Following the stage, Atala-Dunlop regained the lead and held that to the race's finish in Bergamo.