The two days of inspection on the routes of the Glasgow World Cup they gave the first instructions to the Italian technicians. Those of Welcome we heard from them last week, yesterday we spoke with amadori, while now it's up to Paul Sangalli give us your opinion.
The head coach of the women's national team will have to lead his athletes in two road races. First the juniors on Saturday 5th August, who will do 5 laps of the city circuit for a total of 70,5 kilometers. On Sunday 13th it will be the turn of the elite. For them starting from Balloch (on the shores of Loch Lomond) and straight stretch before entering Glasgow, where they will do 6 laps of the circuit for a total of 155 kilometres.
Paolo, what's the route like right after the start?
We will start from this town on the lake, whose surrounding streets are quite wide, with some “eat and drink”, but with a less than perfect road surfaceI imagine, and hope, that they will fix them in the days leading up to the race. After about thirty kilometers we will face a climbYou arrive in Fintry and take a narrow road that leads to the top of the hills of a natural area (the Loch Lomond and Trossachs Mountains Natural Park, ed.). After the hill you go towards Lennoxtown and from there you head towards Glasgow without any further altimetric difficultiesIn total it will be about sixty kilometers.
How did I go up and down?
They're not difficult; they're basically long, seemingly flat stretches. Just to give you some references: The climb is 5,4 kilometers long at an average gradient of 4 percent, while the descent is 5,2 kilometers long and goes down at 5 percent.I don't think this GPM will cause problems for athletes even if they ride without plants. If there is bad weather or worse wind, then something could happen., but before entering the circuit there is plenty of time to recover.
Why would it be more difficult to recover from a potential disadvantage on the Glasgow track?
That's a position circuit. Staying ahead will be keyDaniele (Bennati, the men's coach, ed.) already told you, there are 42 curves in 14 kilometers. There are points where, if there is a few seconds of margin, you can no longer see the head of the race.The longest straight is 800 meters. If you stay behind for too long, you will suffer from having to keep raising the stakes and in the end you could pay for this psychological and physical effort.All the other national teams will have this idea, and it will be a great battle. But we Italians—and I'm not saying this because I'm the coach—are among the best at holding our positions in the top half of the group.
What references did you take?
The circuit basically mirrors the 2018 European Championships, but back then I remember the finish line being inside a green park. This time, the finish is even more linear and more sprint-oriented. 3 kilometers from the finish line there is the last steep section (that of Montrose Street, ed.) which is taken from a bendThen the last thousand meters are fast. There are two left-hand bends interspersed with two straights, the second of which is about half a kilometer long. Up to 400 meters the road descends slightly and then flattens out until the finish line. But I also noted something else.
What?
First, we'll have to figure out where they'll put the barriers. If they have to do a half-block, we risk not being able to pass through to support the athletes. I also noted the locations for supplies, which will be important. Then there's the usual major limitation of the radios.All the riders use them during the season, but they're banned at the World Championships and European Championships. I have a hard time understanding this decision. But I'm saying it for safety reasons. On a circuit, especially one with so many corners, you risk going in hard on one of them and finding yourself with a big crash around the corner and ending up on it.I contest this choice precisely because it is illogical.
How will Paolo Sangalli's Italy fare? Will it be a quick spin or a masterstroke?
You know I don't want to hide. My idea is to start with Balsamo as a leader, but it is obvious that an alternative is needed. Both as a sprinter and as a finisher. We have strong sprinting girls like agree o Barbieri that can work well in such a circuit. But we also have a girl like Longo Borghinwhich is never discussed, neither for her participation nor for the great race or the great work she would do. She has the potential to win on a course like this.
What kind of race might emerge?
Of course, if it were to rain, everything we've said so far would be amplified. For me it will be a World Championship that will be run like a Northern Classic. And at that point I also think of other names. Cecchini, You heal, Confalonieri, Perch, bertizzolo and many others. All girls who are very important in their teams in competitions of that levelIt will be important to see in what psychological and physical condition they will arrive at the World Cup after a Tour Femmes which will have created stress. In any case, I believe we are well equipped for any eventuality..
Is the discussion about young people the same or does it change a lot?
Starting from the U23s, Gasparini she is an athlete who has the right characteristics for this world championshipIf he proves to be strong, he could make his race within the race itself. But we want to win the elite title And if she were to be useful for a certain job, then she could be sacrificed. We'll decide that much later. As for the juniors, however, we need powerful, fast, agile girls. and those who recover best from one effort to the next. In Glasgow, Venturelli can finish alone, but we also have the sprinters. I just have to understand how they will behave in the next matches with the national teamThey already realized the level they will encounter in Ghent at the end of March.
