World champion in elimination, like last year but with a few more thrillsA contact that forced him to change bikes. Then another, but there was no time left to do anything but pedal, and pedal hard at that. Thus Elia Viviani closed the Italian expedition to the world championships in Saint Quentin en Yvelines, putting another nice icing on the cake.
"Finishing like this," he says, "is really nice. I was coming off the disappointment of the omnium (final seventh, ed.). I wanted at least a medal and today I wanted to repeat last year's titleWe know that elimination is a match that suits me and that comes easily to me, but a world championship is always difficult to win. There were two dangerous situations, but luckily I avoided them well.. And then a beautiful final selection. In my opinion, from the last 5 kilometers it was a real battle, so the final sprint came out perfectly. One on one, I was second and the comeback was on the opposite straight. I wanted to gain on the straight, because my impression was that it was impossible to pass on the curves. For this reason I anticipated the sprint, surprising StrongIt went as I thought. The desire to win was so great..."
Every race has its own story
They call them situation sports because, like road tests, there is no stopwatch to mark the result. Elimination is perhaps the wildest. The last one to cross the line ends up out. Inexorably. Lap after lap.. And if yesterday during the elimination of the omnium at a certain point Elia, exhausted, had almost given up fighting, today it was all or nothing.
«At a certain point I broke the first bike – he says – and I changed it for the second one, but it still seemed to me that something was wrong. Then there was another contact, but I knew I couldn't stop and change her again, because I would have lost. So I continued like this. I haven't checked with the mechanics yet to see what happened, though. it worked right down to the line and that's what mattersIn my opinion, compared to last year, the elimination was much more chaotic. Perhaps on a values level it was also less harsh, but more dangerous, more fought.Every race has its own story. Yesterday I finished only fourth in the omnium elimination, and I had some concerns in my head. But when you run for a medal, the motivation is definitely totally different.».
Righteous anger
There was one last-ditch anger in his eyes, the same one he had explained very well to Stefano Rizzato's microphone during the record-breaking Ora di Ganna. Speaking of Pippo and his motivations, precisely Viviani had underlined that there is nothing better than a difficult period for the champion to focus on the objective.
"Today I put all the badness I had left into it. When it ends like this – he says – it's the best way to end the year. Another troubled year, which ends in beautyWhen you wear these colors (he says caressing the rainbow stripes on the shirt, ed.) you can't say that the season has gone badly. The one on the road was definitely negative, because a rider like me can't win just two races, not even top-tier ones. So I'll work to get back to the top there too. In the meantime, let's enjoy this shirt, obviously with the aim of ParisI'm where I wanted to be. So tonight I'll go to the party they've prepared for me and next week I'll enjoy the wedding. They say I'll be in prison starting next Saturday, so let's celebrate this evening, then we'll see...».
The circle closes
To crown the victory of Viviani, strong of a world championship of four golds and three silvers, Marco Villa has started to take stock, but thinking of his first pupil.
«I'm happy for Elia – he says the blue city of the track – yesterday he was disappointed by the omnium, but Today he proved he knows what he's doing, reaching the top in these eventsWinning or placing is not easy, moreover We're getting closer to the Olympic qualifiers and everyone is bringing their best. Two out of two at the World Cup means being there. He is a special boy, a pillar of the group, it was seen from the celebration he received from his companions. I grew up as a technician with him and I hope he grew up with me too.e. Today I finally saw him win the world championship, because in 2021 I was in Greece for the quartet's award ceremonyToday I came full circle. I'm excited for the victories and for the group. I wouldn't change any of them."
