With the overall victory of the Giro della Lunigiana Donne a week ago, the road season of Eliza Bianchi it has already closed, while it is about to enter the cyclocross one. The BFT Burzoni junior had an intense first season in the category (Ossola photo at the top), collecting many placings and also discovering the track with a couple of international medals.
The Italian quartet won silver in July eclecticism in Portugal, then in August the world championship in Holland and both times always behind an untouchable Great Britain, but for Bianchi this 2025 had to project it into a different, more "choral" dimension. For the 17 year old from Brescia, from Lograto, who had almost always raced alone in the lower categories, it was also her debut in a team., understood as a group of teammates and staff. At the beginning of the year, in fact, Stefano Solari, team manager of BFT Burzoni, he had told us that Bianchi's hiring was to be considered a gamble. Elisa has plenty of personality, so let's try to understand with her if this bet is considered a success..
Let's take stock of your year. Did it live up to your expectations?
I'm very happy with how the season went, it was beautiful. I didn't think I'd get results on the track already since I started this yearEven though I might have liked to achieve something more, I have to say that on the road it also went well with many placings and two victories (the first one achieved at the Monza racetrack at the end of May, ed.). Now I will start preparing for cyclocross, even though I have been called up by Lombardy for the Italian track championships (scheduled in Noto from 7 to 9 October, ed.).
Would you like to continue competing both on the road and cyclocross in the future?
This year I'll decide based on the results, but I won't deny that I'm already thinking about how to reconcile everything, including the track. My initial idea would have been to still do this season of cyclocross and then concentrate mainly on the road.However, I don't think about it because I'm very excited. First of all, I'll be racing for a new team (Alè Colnago, which will be presented next week, ed.) and at the same time I would like to earn an Italian national team jersey for the European and World Championships, which I wasn't able to get last year..
Returning to the track, what impact was it?
I had a lot of fun and I erased an old memoryIn my first year as a student, I only did one track training session, and it didn't go well, especially since I was coming from mountain biking. This time, however, everything was great, and I became so passionate about it that I wanted to take it more seriously. I liked the atmosphere and in this respect I have to thank you very much Diego Bragato, which immediately gave me a lot of confidence, and all the staff. I've only done the quartet so far, but he says I might start working on the Madison. We'll see, I'm eager to learn.
This season, you've essentially been on two teams, club and national. How did these experiences go?
To conclude the track discussion, I saw the strength of a groupMany girls who have competed against each other throughout the year join forces to wear the blue jersey and support each other, thanks to the advice of their coaches. With BFT Burzoni it was the same thing, even though at the beginning it was a big change for me Because I was joining a very organized team in every way. I'd always raced alone, and I was a bit scared. As time and races went by, I got along well with my teammates, with the sports directors Krizia and Vittorio (Corradetti and Affaticati respectively, ed.) and the rest of the teamIt was a season in which I learned a lot.
What in particular?
In the team I had that sense of family that I didn't have and that I didn't know. For example I learned to manage the pressure and share the anxiety of the race with my teammatesIt helped me to compare myself with them from this point of view and consequently interacting with my classmates became easier.
And what did Elisa Bianchi learn from the race?
I learned race tactics and understood first-hand how important the team is to a result. I feel like I've grown a lot, also thanks to the sacrifice of giving up a placing to help a teammate.Lunigiana was an example of all this. I helped my teammates win the two stages and I managed to take the overall.
Have you set any goals for 2026?
No one in particular. I'd like to have a good season overall, even repeat this one with a few more wins. Here, Maybe I would like to try to have a little more freedom of action to better understand what kind of rider I am. Next season will also be a season of further lessons for the future.
