While in the men's field the Tour of Italy is still in its early stages, among the women the first grand tour has already been archived. Vuelta de España this year it has changed its appearance a little, aligning itself with the format of Giro Donne e Tour Femmes with over a week of stages. Much has changed in the Iberian race, which has proved to be extremely hard-fought and with an important field in the race, almost borrowed from the Ardennes Classics which concluded on the eve of the race.
Elena Cecchini she is one of those who, coming from the classics (even if she skipped the last one, the Liège-Bastogne-Liège) has run the whole Vuelta and has got a precise idea of how it has changed, driving her teammate Demi Vollering towards success.
«I had already run it last year and I found a very changed test, for the better. In 2023 the problems were mainly related to travel, we had started from the far south, from Valencia and finished in the Basque Country and this had meant, with one less day of racing, very long transfers between one stage and the next. We had pointed this out and the organizers listened to us, this year the hotels were all close together».
From a technical point of view?
It was a very tough race, so much so that the sprinters didn't even have a real chance to show off and play their cards. We also encountered a lot of wind. Each stage had its difficulties, in fact the ranking was very diluted..
In your opinion, is it a race on par with the other two Grand Tours?
Now yes, nothing was missing and the roster was also one of the truly qualified ones, with many protagonists returning from the classics, in fact I would say that many have trained right in the Ardennes to get the right leg in SpainIn some ways, we could even say that participation was higher than in the other two races because they will be closer together on the calendar and some will have to make a decision. I saw eight competitive and high-quality stages; the path taken is the right one.
And what about the timing? Is the fact that it's so far removed from the men's race of the same name an advantage?
It's hard to say, considering that the Vuelta also drives other Iberian races. For example, the Vuelta a Burgos is currently being held, and the organizers are taking a toll on participation, especially since the teams receive cost concessions. At the end of the season I think it would be complicated to find a sufficient number of cyclists for each team, after a stressful season and considering that our rosters are certainly not as large as those of the men's teams.
Are you personally satisfied with your Vuelta?
It was incredibly tough, I can honestly say. The wind was a factor, for those like me who had to do the "dirty work," that is, closing the gaps and keeping the captain under cover. I felt the third stage a lot in particular, precisely because despite the wind we all arrived together in the end.For us, the Vuelta was a key event of the season. Vollering was very keen on it after narrowly missing out last year. She had performed well in the Ardennes, but she finished tired precisely because every day was a battle.
Yet the management of the Ardennes campaign had given rise to some rumours, especially in Liège where it seemed that not everything in your team had gone smoothly…
I don't think the team did anything wrong, I think that in the end the victory slipped away because Demi found athletes fresher than her in the sprintWe had done everything right, we had put Bredevold in the initial breakaway to give her a foothold. She had also lost at the Freccia because Niewiadoma had a better start. There are also her rivals, it should never be forgotten. Demi was as strong last year as she is this year.
Have the transfer rumours about her departure at the start of the season affected you, as a team and individually?
As a team, no. We're looking at the present. Demi is our teammate until the end of the season, and we're working for her. Maybe she personally paid a little for these hesitations, but I also believe that, in the cases where Lotte Kopecky She wasn't there, the pressure on her was greater. I also think that often coming close to winning without achieving it destabilized her a bit. On the other hand, in a stage race there's more tranquility, you compete, there's a chance to make up for lost ground. In a classic race you risk everything and immediately..
You who know her, have you seen her differently?
These have not been easy days. It's difficult to decide what decision to make after being in the same team for 4 years, there are so many considerations to make.Demi is a very sensitive girl, she knows it's a very important decision. We always keep in mind that for us this is a job, every choice has a thousand impacts on our lives. Whatever her decision, we are at her service.
You're in Paris these days with the national team to review the Olympic route. What impressions did you get?
The Olympic race is extraordinary precisely because it's so unique, tactically almost indecipherable. Teamwork, even for those of us who have four athletes competing, will be very different from any other race. The route is beautiful, far from easy, and full of pitfalls. The street circuit is beautiful, with two climbs to tackle several times.. Certainly different from the one in Glasgow. We have a good chance, whether the race ends in a sprint or not. Balsamo is one of the strongest in the world in sprinting, whether it develops as a classic because few like Longo Borghini They know what to do in those cases. In short, there's reason to be optimistic, regardless of who is called up.
