A few more hours and in The Netherlands will host the European Championship of cyclocross. Italy can play a very interesting card among the elite women. The ace in question is Eva Lechner. The other Italian is Maria Alice Arzuffi.
The South Tyrolean is the reigning Italian champion. She's resumed her cross-country season quite well, and most importantly, she's coming away from her MTB season with a silver medal. A sign that when Eva is healthy and calm, she can still be a force to be reckoned with.
Top-quality materials
And the credit for this second youth also goes to Luca Bramati, who follows her in the preparation and technical support. On the bikes Trinx, both in CX and MTB, there is a lot of Lombard technical expertise.
I finished the MTB season well and immediately got back into cyclocross. I struggled a bit at first. Now I'm fine.
«As for the materials, I have to say that I'm very happy with them. The new bike was practically made by Bramati. He knew how and where to intervene. Also this year I went back to ShimanoI'm very happy with this gearbox. I have a special feeling. We have wheels Miche, which are reliable. While the tubulars Challenge They're the same ones I've always used."
Orange wave
On Sunday we run to 's-Hertogenbosch, one of the temples of cyclocross. Racing up there if you're not a local is usually like ending up in the lion's den. This time, however, there will be no spectators, and perhaps the home team will be less hungry.
"Maybe without the fans, who knows," Eva comments, "they'll lose something, but there are still five of them. I'm not saying that in cyclocross you help each other with teamwork, but five of you give each other strength. In short, they're still the favorites.
"I don't know Sunday's course. Two years ago, when it was held here, I wasn't called up. It's a fast course, and there's also a bit of sand. It's not a terrain that can be one of my strong points, but I don't feel too bad about it either. More than anything, if you're not good on the sand, you should run fast on foot, so you can save yourself."
Until the World Cup
For now, we are thinking about the European Championships, but Lechner will continue straight to the World Cup in Ostend at the end of January. He might miss a Cx race or two.
«The idea is to get to the World Cup. But let's remember that I also do cyclocross for training. After the World Championships I will rest a bit". Eva is in fact then called to Tokyo Olympics in MTB, even more so after the world championship silver.
Have you spoken to Celestino, the Italian MTB coach, about the program?
"Luca talks to Mirko," Eva says. "He's the one who makes the plans and they discuss them together."
