Il world championship velodrome It looks like a nightclub. It lights up and shuts down depending on the thunderstorms that alternate with glimpses of sunshine over Roubaix. And the same goes for its colors. The large windows act as a "switch" to this stage of cycling. Despite the restrictions imposed by Covid (unbelievable even for us journalists, it feels like we've gone back a year), there's no shortage of people in the stands.
Every time a Frenchman takes to the track the fans get excited. But yesterday we got excited with Martina FidanzaThe Bergamo area he won gold in scratch, The track's "road race." Everyone starts together, 15 kilometers, and whoever finishes first wins.
The women's Scratch begins, Fidanza is already in front of the balustrade, a sign of destiny... Velodrome full since the morning sessions
The women's Scratch begins, Fidanza is already in front of the balustrade, a sign of destiny... Velodrome full since the morning sessions
Escape from afar
And how she won, Martina! If we were on the road, we might call it a solo attack 50 kilometers from the finish. And to think that the Italian team had completely different ideas.
«True – a new world champion with a cold tells us – the idea was to have and experience a calm race and focus everything on the final sprint, perhaps even starting long so as not to get caught up in the chaos. Anyway, to have a much calmer and more linear race. But then with five laps to go, a gap opened up and when I passed in front of our garage Salvoldi He told me to go. And I listened.
"Did I notice the hole? Sure, but you know... five laps isn't a short time! I was a little hesitant. But after Dino's voice I gave it a try.. And it went well."
Well-calibrated lens
And it was a triumph. For two laps, it seemed unreal. It almost seemed like there were twenty laps to go. The others were also surprised: what now? Who's going to close the gap? They said to themselves... But by the time they'd had these thoughts, Martina had already escaped. Beautifully level, compact, powerful on her bike. Perhaps the best Martina ever.
«Yes – confirms Fidanza – I really think so: the best ever. I had really good feelings on and off the run, especially for this end of season period.. This was the big goal of the year. We worked hard on it. We worked to get to the top, and we did it. Even though I have a bit of a cold right now. It came on last night. I already had a bit of a sore throat yesterday morning, but it went well. It's okay, though. The important thing is to hang in there until tonight.
"How was the feeling with the track? Not great at first. This circuit has very long straights and tight corners compared to other tracks. And," he adds after a short pause, "it's not the best for quartets."
Towards the quartet
Quartets: yes, because it's not over at all. In a few, very few hours, Fidanza will return to the French parquet for the final of the team pursuit. And we can still expect something important. A quartet that is starting to gain international weight. There is also the Balsamo (and there should be the agree , Alzini, the Paternoster (He's eliminated this evening.) And if it's true that names count almost as much as legs...
Martina, however, is super calm. "Oh yes, yes," she laughs, "after a world gold medal, I'm so calm and relaxed! But I'll give it my all. In any case, it'll be a special quartet on this track. It took us a while to get used to, especially with the changes. They need to be anticipated in some way, you don't want to go too high and the gear change itself needs to be a little wider (i.e. longer, ed.)».
But we still we have our heads on yesterday. As Martina Fidanza accelerates, the others look at each other and the hole opens. A technical-tactical masterpiece. And even today, here at the velodrome, we only talk about that summer. Even our foreign colleagues, They patted us on the back and reminded us of yesterday: "How good Martina!" And the French applauded, even though she wasn't one of theirs...
