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The 2009 Giro d'Italia was the 92nd running of the Giro d'Italia, one of professional cycling's Grand Tours; the race also marked the centennial of the first Giro d'Italia. It began in Lido di Venezia on 9 May, and concluded after 21 stages in Rome on the 31st. The Giro was raced on a unique path through Italy, taking the peloton to some historic cities and towns in Italian cycling. Denis Menchov (pictured), representing the Rabobank team, was the winner of the race. After having taken the race lead with his victory in a long and difficult individual time trial midway through the race, Menchov defended it against eventual runner-up Danilo Di Luca by staying with Di Luca in the race's last stages. Di Luca, riding for LPR Brakes–Farnese Vini, won the points classification in addition to finishing second overall, but tested positive for the banned blood booster continuous erythropoietin receptor activator twice during the race and stands to have those results removed. (more...)
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