The first stage of the 2023 Giro d'Italia Donne featured an individual time trial (ITT) with a length of 4.4 kilometres (2.7 mi) around Chianciano Terme in Tuscany.[2] Heavy rain and thunderstorms affected the stage, with multiple riders crashing including Mavi Garcia and Chloé Dygert of Canyon–SRAM - with Dygert still managing to set the fastest time. 2022 winner van Vleuten then beat Dygert, before the organisers called for a pause due to the weather. Resuming around 20 minutes later, Letizia Paternoster of Team Jayco-AlUla then beat van Vleuten's time by five-hundredths of a second.[3]
With over 100 riders remaining, the organisers paused the stage again due to standing water on the roads and full storm drains.[4][5] The stage was eventually cancelled on the grounds of rider safety using the Extreme Weather Protocol.[3][5] van Vlueten called the stage "a lottery" and that it was good that the stage had been cancelled.[6]
All times set were disregarded, and no classification jerseys were awarded. The race therefore started on stage 2 on Saturday 1 July.[7]
The third stage was neutralised at 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) from the finish line for safety reasons. Times for the general classification were taken from that point, and the stage had no time bonuses.[10]
^Knöfler, Lukas (2023-06-30). "Cancelled Giro d'Italia Donne ITT 'a lottery' says Annemiek van Vleuten". cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 2023-07-01. "Hope everyone is OK that crashed. Was a lottery. Good got cancelled. A domani," Van Vleuten wrote afterwards about her trip through the streets of Chianciano Terme