«I don't know Arzeni at all – Sofia Bertizzolo said the other day of its future sports director – I've heard very good things about him so far. Above all, I look for trust and motivation from him., something he is very capable of putting into everything. From the outside you can only recognize that gives a chance to all girls. In fact, throughout the year he has always won with Valcar and always with more athletes. If we look at the best talents of this spring, they came out of Valcar, because we have Elisa Balsamo, Marta Cavalli herself, Guazzini, Persico this year formidable. And they all came out of him. So it means that on a physical level, but especially on a mental level, he managed to give them something more».
Modern female athletes
The Chief (opening with Alice Maria Arzuffi at the Vuelta Burgos) read the words of the Venetian athlete, who will lead next year at UAE Team Adq. But today, more than knowing his opinion on the athlete, we are interested in understanding their working method. His ability to plan and give confidence to all the girls of the team he works with, so that they perform at their best.
«I don't know how they work elsewhere – he says – but certainly Scheduling work is a good thing. It's useful for everyone, for coaches and athletes. Sofia also spoke about the World Cup, and I think it's useful for a coach to build an increasingly smaller squad. This way, he can give the right guidance to clubs, who need to plan their activities. For the rest, there's no Arzeni recipe. So far I have been lucky enough to have modern athletes who know how to be the captain and also help on all the courses. I like this kind of rider and I think Sofia fits right in.She is a complete and modern athlete. A 23-year-old who came fourth in the Flanders and that at the end of such a long World Cup he was still there working...".
Interchangeable roles
There is a passage in the following words of Sofia Bertizzolo that caught our attention and refers to the fact of having found herself too often pulling for others, almost out of an excess of honesty.
«I don't think it's correct to define an athlete as a gregarious and that's it – Arzeni continues – but here I can only talk about what we do at Valcar-Travel&Service. I have always tried to have versatile athletes, capable of helping and also running.A young player who joins the team has to earn her captaincy on the pitch. It's always been like this with us and By behaving in this way, the young women have earned the trust of others.. So it happened that a girl like Elisa Balsamo, at a certain point in the season, would make herself available to others who had always helped her. And it was something that came naturally. It would be difficult if there is a young girl who passes by thinking she is already at the top and maybe she is being clever.But these are dynamics that exist in all jobs and all teams."
Space for everyone
But Arzeni goes further. Because beyond the dynamics between athletes and the exchange of favors, Now we also have to take the calendar into account very rich, which makes it impossible to always focus on the same girls, condemning the others to… forced labor.
«It's clear that the season has really gotten a lot longer – he explains – Next year the WorldTour will open in January in Australia and will finish in OctoberSo when you have 14-15 solid athletes, over such a long period there will be room for all of them. And Sofia Bertizzolo, to name one, was born in 1997 like Silvia Persico and like her, perhaps she is reaching the right maturity. Fast athletes are quicker, let's take a Consonni. But if you have to compete against Van Vleuten or Vos, There's no need to rush. Patience and perseverance are needed, without letting yourself go.».
Persian Surprise
Silvia Persico, bronze medalist at the World Championships, is the starting point for this final thought. And although Arzeni has always said she was ready for the big leap, Seeing her at this level surprised him too.
«I knew that Silvia was ready for certain races – Davide confirms – and I often talked about it with Valentino (Villa, president of Valcar-Travel&Service, ed.). When they left, I told him that we wouldn't win the world championship again, but we would come close.. And I think that if they hadn't slept when Van Vleuten left, if Kopecky who looks at her twice had moved, Silvia would have gone with her and maybe she would have played for the World CupAnyway, getting back to her, I knew she was strong, but not that she would finish so high in the rankings.
«He had a significant consistency of performanceFrom the bronze medal at the cross-country world championship to this one on the road, 9 months have passed in which she has always been at the forefront. So much so that at the Vuelta Burgos, given that she was performing so well in the stage races, I stopped her and changed her programShe was supposed to go to Belgium, but instead she ended up at high altitude preparing for the Giro. He found maturity at 25, it's normal that the first among the elite are difficultAnd now that it's harvest time, we'll try to do everything right. Maybe the same will happen with Bertizzolo. And the best part is that I'll have them both on my team.».
