Giro d'Italia director Mauro Vegni said preparations are underway to ensure the Corsa Rosa can be held safely, but clarified that he and his staff are not planning to race in a closed room without spectators.

Vegni noted that it will be up to local authorities and the UCI to determine any restrictions, rider protocols, or other rules that might be imposed to limit the risk of COVID-19 infection. [The Giro d'Italia is scheduled for October 3-25 after the Tour de France (August 29-September 20), with the Vuelta a España (October 20-November 8) coinciding with the final week of the Giro.

RCS Sport will also host the Strade Bianche (August 1), Il Lombardia (scheduled for October 31, but likely to be changed to August 8), Milan - Sanremo (likely to be changed to August 22), and Tirreno-Adriatico (September 7-14) shall be.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Veni and senior RCS Sport staff will have an important conference call next week with Italy's sports minister to discuss the Giro d'Italia.

Italy was the first European country to impose a strict blockade in early March, and the official death toll from COVID-19 has exceeded 33,000, most of them in Lombardy. However, the government now plans to relax blockade restrictions and will soon decide whether it is safe to host large sporting events.

Serie A soccer will be held behind closed doors if permission is granted, but Veni is working on what he calls an "open door race" format, like the Tour de France's Christian Prudhomme, where spectators can watch the race from the roadside while respecting social distance. He is working on what he calls an "open door race" format where spectators can watch the race from the roadside.

"We are working on only one hypothesis: an 'open door' Giro d'Italia," Veni told Tuttobiciweb.

"It is up to others to set the final instructions and rules we must follow. Of course, after seeing the crowds gathered in Milan for the Frecce Tricolori jet flyby, we will have to ask ourselves,"

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The Giro d'Italia will not start in Hungary as planned, but the Grande Partenza and opening stage will be held in Sicily or Calabria in southern Italy, then follow the original route along Sicily and the Adriatic coast, Madonna di Campiglio, Passo dello Stelvio, and a mountain stage to Sestriere, followed by a time trial to Milan on October 25. Some of the stages may visit the areas most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic as a show of solidarity.

"We have to finalize the opening three stages, but there will be no major changes to the rest of the route," Veni said.

"We have narrowed the starting options down to Sicily and Calabria. The new race route will be announced online at the end of June or beginning of July."