From Glasgow to a beach in the Marche region the step is not so short, but Holiday days are few and to give herself a little recovery Elena Bissolati has chosen this way: blue in the after-work, like Ceci and most Paralympians. Twenty-six years old, from San Giovanni in Croce, Cremona, always ready to laugh and with a beautiful smile, he ran in the world championships the tandem tests together with Chiara Colombo, winning the silver medal in the team event on the last evening.
A new dimension for her, which together with Miriam Vece she carried the blue speed on her shoulders when the previous Federation had forgotten it, isolated, erased. Only that while her peer had managed to enter the UCI center in Aigle, Elena remained in Italy, where that sense of loneliness finally made her say enoughEnough with the usual national team, but long live it! Silvano Perusini's offer to try to do something with the Paralympians (in the opening, Elena is with Chiara Colombo in Montichiari, Instagram photo).
Did you expect more from your time with the national team?
Let's say I had reached my destination, also because I had already started working. I started two years ago and in the meantime I was making things fit together. But I think that to move forward with the "normal" elite environment, if you don't do it for work you get to a certain point where you have to choose: run or work.
Does it bother you a little that they're taking over the speed sector now? Would it have made a difference if they'd done it a year earlier?
Probably yes. Probably if they had moved earlier, it would have been different.But let's say I'm not complaining, because I think I can give a lot on the tandem, both on a personal level and on a performance level.
What job do you do?
I've always liked working in graphics, which is what I studied. I actually had to make a choice and I work in a bar-restaurant in my town, to fit in training sessions and competitionsOtherwise I wouldn't have made it. And so to compete, like Ceci, I use my vacation days.
What did this first Paralympic World Championship mean to you?
It was my first tandem experience, so it was a whole new world. Obviously we aimed high, but we didn't expect the results that arrived.
The track sector is new, the tandem crews are new, the technician is new…
We are practically all new, with Ceci, plebani and I who come away from the "normal" national team and we moved towards the Paralympic one.
How did this shift come about?
They contacted me through Perusini and I accepted immediately. It was January, we didn't have to think about it much.I'd always joked about wanting to try tandem, but I hadn't thought about all this. But I said yes right away, Even Perusini, who called me, was impressed. He asked me if I wanted to think about it., but I had already made up my mind. I didn't know who he was; I met him later.
What was it like interacting with another person on the tandem anyway?
It wasn't easy at first, but I had fun right away. Then obviously... finding the pedal stroke wasn't easyIt took time for Chiara to get to know me and for her to get to know me.
Also because you are an athlete of international standing, she is making her absolute debut…
She is I'm just starting out and this could also be a plus, since it has the opportunity to grow well.
Are the Paralympics the goal?
Certainly yes, but in my opinion not those of Paris. We will definitely try, but I think we won't have much time available. But never say never, given the world cup what we did.
You have a motto on WhatsApp: "Everything comes back, you just have to be patient." Why is that?
I'm a pretty impulsive girl who wants everything right away and They've always told me that it's not exactly like that. And in fact it isn't.The motto is always that everything in life comes back around, so just be patient and sooner or later things will work out.
Could this chance with the tandem be the right thing that's coming?
Yup, I'm really sure that's the case and it's beautiful.
What kind of relationship has developed between you and Chiara Colombo?
At the beginning I had to drive two other girls, they didn't entrust her to me right away. It was good because I realized there are differences between one girl and another. The way they pedal, the way they carry themselves, so many things... Chiara is totally inexperienced, apart from a few years in the youth mountain bike team.So she trusted him immediately, since she didn't even know what the track was and on the road it had gone well, but not at a competitive level.
Have you also traveled together?
This year we've done a bit of everything. In June we took part in the Italian road championships and we won those too., but I think I'll specialize in track, because that's where I come from and it wouldn't make sense to waste that work.
Will you continue to do some individual competitions?
This year I competed in the Italian championship and if I can, I'll do it again next year. I like running and then it was a moment of comparison, to understand what condition I was in.
How is the season going?
Let's start again right away, because in September we have the Italian championship: they have yet to confirm the date. And then in March there will be the World Championships in Rio, where points will be earned for Olympic qualification.. So if everything goes well, Next summer we might have something important to do…
