[9] Koblet was thought to have a better support from his team relative to the past couple of years and was expected to contend for the general classification.

[11] Outside candidates included Fiorenzo Magni (Nivea) who would normally be considered a more legitimate contender; however, he was recovering from a fall in the one–day race Roma–Napoli–Roma.

[4] Their Raymond Impanis was seen a potential threat, but due to disputes with their team director, his participation was questionable.

[4] The Dutch team Locomotief was thought to be filled with good climbers and rouleurs with the likes of Wim Van Est, Wout Wagtmans, and the Voorting brothers Adrie and Gerrit.

[4] Fritz Schär (Guerra) was seen as a rider who would favor the intermediate sprints classification despite his recent poor performance at the Tour de Romandie.

"[4] Notable absences included Ferdinand Kübler (Fiorelli) who had an ongoing dispute with the race organizers following his abandonment of the Giro the year before.

[9] Louison Bobet (Mercier) was seen as a rider who could pose a threat to Coppi, but due to previous incidents of giving him up, he was not seen as a strong contender.

[4][10] Critics felt that the route would be similar to year's past, where all the action would be in the closing days, citing the 20th and 21st stages as being the most difficult.

[9][10] The press felt that the increased number of intermediate sprints would lead to more attacks throughout the stage ad help animate the race.

His fans were hoping that he would show more action on the twenty-first stage which included the Bernina Pass, but cyclists rode slowly as a form of protest against the racing conditions, taking almost ten hours to cover the 222 km stage; this event became known as the Bernina strike.

The leader of the general classification – calculated by adding the stage finish times of each rider – wore a pink jersey.

[27] The writer acknowledged that some critics felt Italian cycling was beginning to decline as the "Big Three" Bartali, Coppi, and Magni would be soon exiting the sport;[27][28] however, the writer noted that Giancarlo Astrua, Nino Defilippis, Pasquale Fornara, among others would help maintain Italian cycling's presence.

[27] The writer concluded that the Swiss riders have earned respect from their peers and become favorites entering races now, while stating that the Swiss riders that will contest the upcoming Tour de France will have a lengthy time off to rest before its start because of the 1954 FIFA World Cup.

"[19] Another Nouvelliste Valaisan writer described the collective performance by the Swiss riders as the best in the nation's history at the Giro, as three finished in the top 12 of the general classification.