At the start of yesterday's stage, in Tavernes de la Valldigna, Elisa Balsamo approached the flagship of the Valcar-Travel&Service. For the world champion it was the first race of the season, the first with the jersey of Trek-SegafredoThe last time she wore a number on her back, at the Women's cycling's Tour, the Piedmontese still had the rainbow stripes, but the usual insignia on her chest. And she had won.
«It was a meeting between old friends – comments Davide Arzeni – Two of my friends won yesterday: Elisa and Covi. I'm happy for her, she'll win 10 to 20 races this year. She came to greet the whole team, then she ran and wonI knew it would turn out like this, it's the fourth time they've done it. On the climb they went over the top Cavalli, Van Vleuten and Mavi Garcia, then the group went back down. We've been a bit distracted, but we're getting ready for Belgium.».
From Elisa to Elisa
Elisa Balsamo won wearing the rainbow jersey and the Trek-Segafredo brand after wearing Valcar all her life. It was the other Elisa, Longo Borghini, who launched her towards success, the same one that in Leuven he took her by the hand and launched her in the sprint that earned her the world title.
"Signing with Trek-Segafredo," the world champion says, "wasn't a blind decision. When Luca Guercilena contacted me in the spring, I asked Elisa Longo Borghini, with whom I have a deep friendship and a relationship of respect, to tell me her feelings about the teamHis words reflected my expectations and the same happened when speaking with Giorgia Bronzini, the team's coach at the time. It was a thoughtful choice, because I had other proposals, but also the best one I could make.
«Starting so well is a boost of confidence, the best way to make my debut, but my prospects are still unchangedI have to keep my feet firmly on the ground, we're just at the beginning and I have to look forward. What needs to be emphasized, and perhaps the most important thing, is the feeling I already have with the teamThe immediacy with which certain mechanisms and chemistry were created is more than positive."
The Valcar in the North
When we ask him what effect it had on him to see her win like that, Arzeni asks for the reserve questionWe have already talked a lot with him about the Valcar-Travel&Service after the departure of many girls and this is what he clings to in order to challenge yesterday's pupil.
"We'll try to annoy her," he says, "on faster routes or those in the north. We're all here in Spain. In one apartment there are the girls who are running, in the other the North groupI'm here with agree, Sanguineti, Carbonari, Gasparini. Today we couldn't compete with the climbers, but in some race they will notice us.We will leave for the first Flemish races next week."
Rainbow Classics
The Northern air also awakens the interest of Elisa Balsamo and it makes you smile thinking about when last year we dropped by their retreat and found the whole team in that villa lost in the fields, with the future world champion who was studying for the next exam.
«I'm going North – he says – and it's my dream calendar. There's a kind of love-hate relationship between me and those stones.I can't wait to race in Belgium, but as soon as I feel the hardness of the pavement, I wonder who made me do it. What these Classics make me feel is unparalleled. The adrenaline I feel when facing a cobblestone section, the tension I feel in the group at key momentsThe Roubaix is something else. I'm still having trouble deciding if it's for me. It's certainly an epic and fascinating classic. The arrival at the velodrome, for a track cyclist like me, is a dream ending.».
Giro, Tour and degree
Elisa aims high. The degree is one step away and he would gladly add a master's degree to it, one stage at the Giro and one at the Tour.
«I like to plan my days and my commitments – she says – it makes me feel more at peace when facing any unexpected events. In this team we are surrounded by so many experts that we don't have to think about anything else but running to winI feel I am in the ideal conditions to achieve my goals.
«I have two exams left to graduate. If all goes well, I could graduate by the beginning of the summer. And then I might think about enrolling in a master's degree. It's a passion I don't want to give up. And then Studying is a good way to take your mind off cycling, a form of decompression. At this stage of my life, cycling is the priority, my greatest commitment, but I think it's It is also important to have a long-term perspective».
The same trust
Arzeni remains silent. He knows exactly how good the girl is, and since he's still there with her advice, he certainly isn't surprised by her performance.
When a collaboration has such deep roots and when together we have overcome even dramatic moments like post-Tokyo, A change of shirt certainly won't change the confidence.
