Strade Bianche race guide

We take a look at this famous one-day race which takes place on Tuscany's dusty white gravel roads.

With its white gravel roads serving up a unique challenge, the Strade Bianche (Saturday 5 March) has quickly become a favourite among cycling aficionados, and is now a key fixture on the spring Classics calendar.

Dubbed a 'Northern Classic in Southern Europe' by the organisers, this Italian race is one of the most picturesque events of the season, with riders winding their way through idyllic Tuscan vineyards and along dusty country terrain.

And the Strade Bianche - which translates literally to 'white roads' - finishes in Sienna's beautiful Piazza del Campo, regarded by many as one of Europe's finest medieval squares.

The piazza is also home to the famous Palio horse race which has been around since the 17th Century, and while the Strade Bianche is a little younger than that - having started in 2007 - it has quickly developed a devoted audience of its own.

Previous winners include one-day specialist Fabian Cancellara and our very own Michal Kwiatkowski, who took the title in 2014 while riding for Omega Pharma - Quick-Step.

'Kwiato' is back for the first time since then, and is joined in a strong Team Sky line up by home favourites Gianni Moscon and Salvatore Puccio, as well as Andy Fenn, Michal Golas, Peter Kennaugh, Christian Knees and Lars Petter Nordhaug.

With the potential of rain forecast for Saturday's showpiece, dusty gravel could quickly turn to slippery mud, and scenes reminiscent of 2010's epic Giro d'Italia stage to Montalcino.

The route

The punishing parcours has been cut by 25 kilometres for 2016, but that doesn't mean it will be any easier for the riders.

The race now starts and finishes in Siena, and along the way there are nine gravelled sections totalling 52.8km - nearly one third of the entire race route. The first is a comfortable flat section just 10km into the race and that acts as a precursor for what is to come.

The toughest sections are five and six, tackled during the midway point of the race. The fifth takes in the exposed Crete Senese hills, before its successor sees the peloton battle their way over the Monte Sante Marie.

The race is likely to split up at that point and the leaders will attempt to stay away on the shorter but steeper sections to come.

The final strip of white road features a punchy climb up to 18%, and any escapees who make it over that will fancy their chances of staying clear on the 12km run in to Siena.

Positioning on those late twisty tracks could prove pivotal, and once inside Siena's ancient city walls, the riders will be met by a narrow 16% climb up the cobbled Via Santa Canterina.

That sharp final ascent has proved decisive over the years, and whoever crests it first will be in pole position to claim a hard-fought and richly-deserved title.

TV coverage: Highlights on British Eurosport 1 at 1645 and 2220.