The Olympics are nearing their conclusion, but in the meantime the WorldTour is starting up again and is offering the classic of the summer on Saturday, the San Sebastian and It has always represented a sort of recovery for those who left the Tour with ambitions, still unsatisfied by the three weeks of the French raceA challenge that has changed somewhat over time: still beloved in the Basque Country, where spectators flock to the streets in droves, it has perhaps lost some of its former luster, but remains one of those events that enhance a career.
He knows it well Francesco Casagrande, born in 1970, who won the Clasica de San Sebastian twice, in 1998 and 1999: «However, it was a race from another era – admits the Tuscan – even from a technical point of view it has changed a lot. Once upon a time, everything was at stake on the Jaizkibel and we knew that the race would be decided on that climb and we had to be ready.Now, however, there are at least a couple of tough climbs later, so many people pull back a bit on the Jaizkibel and wait. In fact, it's rare for pure climbers to emerge, more so than rouleurs who hold their own on the climbs."
So did this change the strategy in your opinion?
Undoubtedly, because it avoids pushing hard on the ramps of the main climb, which in itself is merciless. Let's say that today the Jaizkibel is mainly used to understand who is in good condition and who is not, it is there that the race is set up, it is decided what to do on the subsequent climbsIt's no longer a watershed moment, but it remains an important point for knowing how the race will end.
Even in your time, however, he dictated the tactics for the various teams a bit…
I won my two races in different ways. Given that I always did well in that race, also because the warm months were the ones in which I was in the best condition, the first year I was at Cofidis and I made the team work with the precise intention of forcing the climb. There we went away in 3, with me there was Axel Merckx e Piepoli. We reached the top with a thirty second advantage, we had over 30 kilometres to go before the finish but we found a good agreement and they didn't catch us again, then we played it in sprint where I knew I was stronger.
In 1999?
The following year was more difficult. I had changed teams, I was at Vini Caldirola, where Donati He did a fantastic job launching me. This time, when I broke away, no one followed, but at the top I had about twenty seconds on a group of about twenty riders. I honestly thought I wouldn't make it, but I wanted to try anyway and the final part became a sort of stopwatch.At -5 the group was about ten seconds apart, but fortunately there was no collaboration between them. I held on and made it. A great feat then, today it would be considered almost normal…
Why do you think pure climbers no longer emerge?
Probably because the figure of the climber no longer exists, if we consider it in the etymology of the past. But I think that the categories we knew no longer exist: climber, rouleur, sprinter... Today, there are winners, those who go fast everywhere, uphill and downhill. This is changing everything, thanks in part to technological advances. You find people who win stage races and classics, who go from far away but also win in sprintsIt's a different kind of cycling, I say it's hasty: Already at 18 you live with the fear that no team will take youIf you can't find your way, you're almost done for. I don't like that very much.
Looking back, is there an edition that left you feeling bitter?
The one in 2001. We were on the run with Jalabert, Belli and the mourning rebellinOn the final climb, I tried to break away, but the latter closed the gap, thus playing into the hands of Jalabert, who knew he was faster. In fact, I finished in second place, but I could have made it three.
What race is it?
It's incredible, there's a crowd and a roar that you don't hear anywhere else. I have always had a good relationship with the Basque Country, among other things I often won there because those roads suited me.In fact, I won the Tour of the Basque Country twice and the Subida a Urkiola. I felt almost at home; that's the region with the most fans in Spain. Back then, however, the race counted towards the World Cup, and practically everyone went. Today, it's just one of many, and that makes me a little sad. But I love the Basque Country, and I think I'll go there on vacation, by bike, of course...
