Last years champion, Mara Abbott, sought to defend her title riding for the UnitedHealthcare team. Five-time winner Fabiana Luperini rode in the race for the 13th time, and plans to retire after the race.[2]
In the 2014 edition of the race there are a number of stages which contain critical climbs which will favor the races who have General classification ambitions. The first of these notable climbs comes on Stage 3, San Donato Val di Comino is over 4.5 km at an average of 4.7%.
Stage 6 sees one of the most significant climbs of the 2014 edition of the race. The gains almost 700 metres of altitude in approximately 8 km, therefore averaging over 8%.
The following table shows the number of points awarded for the Points and Mountains classifications. With respect to the Mountains classification, the table shows how the points are scaled dependent on the category of the climb.[3]
Position
Competition
Points scale
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
10th
Points classification
N/A
15
12
10
8
6
5
4
3
2
1
Mountains classification
1st Category
13
11
9
7
5
–
–
–
–
–
2nd Category
7
5
3
2
1
–
–
–
–
–
3rd Category
5
4
3
2
1
–
–
–
–
–
Time bonuses[]
Time bonuses of 10, 6, and 4 seconds are awarded to the first three riders across the finish line of each stage (except the prologue). Time bonuses of 3, 2, and 1 seconds are awarded to the first three riders to cross the line of each intermediate sprint.[3]
