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Trek-Segafredo is ready for the Giro d’Italia, the second Grand Tour of the season scheduled to start October 3 in Sicily and end in Milan on October 25. For 2020, the USA-registered WorldTeam enters into the Italian Grand Tour challenge with a big declared target: the Maglia Rosa.
“We had announced 2020 as a turning point in our approach to the Grand Tours. Porte’s third place in the Tour de France was tangible proof of our renewed ambition for the general classifications. The Giro d’Italia can become our consecration,” said general manager Luca Guercilena.
“As we have never done so far in a Grand Tour, for this Giro we decided to build a team around a single rider, Vincenzo Nibali, with the sole objective of pursuing the dream of the Maglia Rosa. We’ve selected a compact group focused on the challenge for the general classification, and it will be the motif of our race. We have great confidence in Vincenzo’s skills, experience, personality, and professionalism. And, of course, we are equally confident that his teammates will give more than one-hundred percent to help him win.”
With an impressive palmares of two victories (2013 and 2016), two times second (2011 and 2019) and third (2010 and 2017) in eight editions raced, plus seven stage wins, Vincenzo Nibali knows what it will take to leave his mark on the Giro again.
Trek-Segafredo selected a line-up with a strong vocation for climbing who knows the pitfalls of the Corsa Rosa. The most experienced is Gianluca Brambilla (seven editions and one stage win) followed by Pieter Weening (five editions and two stage wins), with Giulio Ciccone, Julien Bernard, Nicola Conci, Jacopo Mosca, and Antonio Nibali completing the eight-man line-up.
Giulio Ciccone won the mountains jersey (2019) and two stages (2016, 2019) of the Giro and his confirmation to the squad after his positive COVID-19 test almost a month ago is the best news for Trek-Segafredo.
“Giulio is a very important rider for our team, regardless of the Giro. I am very happy to see him recovered and eager to run. The feedback we have had in the last two weeks of training has been comforting. We are aware of what he has been through, and only a few days of races he has in his legs and how much 15 days of forced stop can weigh in the economy of preparation. He will have no pressure from us, and we want a cautious approach to the race. We are confident he will mature into top condition on the road and become an essential player in the third week,” added Guercilena.
Trek-Segafredo arrives at the pink challenge after a path of “group maturation” comprised of races, camps, and specific training, explained sport director Adriano Baffi, part of the technical guidance together with Yaroslav Popovich and Paolo Slongo.
“Last winter we defined a working group that over the months has been able to consolidate through a common path. First of all, to help them get to know each other and the staff who will have to work side by side for almost a month. To pursue an ambitious goal in a Giro d’Italia, the care of the group is a fundamental element,” continued Baffi.
“If I think about what awaits us, I imagine a Giro in crescendo, like the route of the race itself and like the scripts of Nibali’s successes in the Grand Tours. We are aware that we have a very demanding race ahead of us with only little breath in between.
“In each stage, we will have a goal to reach because the final success must be built day by day. In the flat stages, we will have to keep Vincenzo safe and away from trouble. In the mixed stages, help him avoid any surprises. And in the mountain stages, we will have to play our game. The team was built for this, and I am sure that everyone will do what they must to reach the final goal.”
Trek-Segafredo line-up for the 103rd Giro d’Italia
- Vincenzo Nibali (ITA)
- Giulio Ciccone (ITA)
- Gianluca Brambilla (ITA)
- Pieter Weening (NED)
- Julien Bernard (FRA)
- Jacopo Mosca (ITA)
- Nicola Conci (ITA)
- Antonio Nibali (ITA)
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