Two Italians in Holland: Francesca Barale (DSM photo at the beginning) ed Eleonora CiaboccoThere has been a lot of talk about the juniors who have chosen to go abroad to become great, when in reality il Team DSM had inaugurated this new course a couple of years ago. First with Gianmarco Garofoli and then, precisely, with Ursella and the two blue ones.
The women's team is made up of 16 athletes from 7 nations, with an average age of 21 years. What intrigued us, however, was the mechanism by which they managed to select two such young girls. And if in the case of Belletta e Mattio at Jumbo Visma, for example, the first to come forward were the respective agents, the feeling is that the team moved directly here.
A word from Albert Timmer
We asked Albert Timmer, who is 37 years old and stopped racing in 2017 when he was still wearing the Team Sunweb jersey, later becoming DSM. His role is that of coach in the women's team.
«For the selection of foreign girls – he begins – we have Hans Timmermans As head of scouting, we look at the complete athlete. So we don't just evaluate the physical level, but also who the athlete is as a person.. And we often go to the races to watch them run."
Hans Timmermans is a key figure in the team. He joined the women's team after serving as sporting director for the junior and U23 teams and after a stint with the Dutch national team. She started at Team DSM eight years ago and her role is transversal between the women's team and the pro team., in the exchange that characterizes the Dutch group. Timmer continues to explain, let's go back to talking about Barale and Ciabocco.
You've known Francesca since last year: have you seen her improve in the first season?
We have seen a big improvement in its development during the season, in all aspects as an athlete and on a human level.
What was his racing level when he arrived?
As I said, She showed a lot of potential and was important for the team in many races. But we like to develop cyclists especially when they are young in all aspects of cycling, so the'we also tested it in races that perhaps weren't the most suitable.
How did she adapt to the team's style?
Very well. The values we have as a team, she also has as a person, plus it brings an Italian touch.
What are your possible goals for 2023?
He will have a really nice program for this season, where we will also start looking at his personal development and ambitions. So there will be some changes in the calendar compared to 2022 and it will have an important role in supporting Juliette Labous in the most important races.
Speaking of Eleonora Ciabocco, where have you seen her shine?
It had already entered our radar in 2021, thanks to his national title and second place at the European ChampionshipsWhat we saw her do last season only confirmed our thoughts about her.
She's a different athlete than Francesca: what future do you see for her?
It's too early to really tell, We like to develop our girls in the early years in all types of competitionsSo we'll leave her a more open first year.
We saw Francesca Barale in Liège in her first year in the WorldTour, will Eleonora try some big races in 2023?
With the team's current WorldTour program, Eleonora will also do a mix of some big races and some smaller onesWe think it will be good for his development to get a taste of the big races too.
Will he live in Sittard like the “devo team” boys or will he stay at home?
Eleonora will be at the KCC (Keep Challenging Center, the citadel in the city of Sittard where the team's headquarters are located, ed.) only sometimes, but We also keep in mind that she still has to go to school (and get promoted), so we aim to find a good balance. With school and what's also important is finding a good balance between private life and cycling.
