Speaking of young Italians who might start having their say, Giovanni Aleotti is at the gates of Bologna which, between Covid and ailments, closed a 53-day racing season. In this span, He helped Hindley win the Giro d'Italia, winning the Sibiu Tour himself for the second consecutive year.Too little? Just right? Let's hear what the person concerned thinks.
«In the end it was a positive year – he says – maybe I expected a little more from the first part of the season, but I had a few problems and it didn't start very well. After the first training camp in Mallorca, I got Covid and was alone in the hotel room for a week. Then it took me a while to get back into shape, I was also at high altitude instead At the Sanremo I got bronchitis and I finished the race already having a fever. In short, I carried these problems with me until the Giro, then little by little things started to improve. I won in Sibiu. I competed in Poland, and in Canada I had perhaps my best performance of the season., especially given the level and the fact that it was the week before the World Cup."
A tour to work.
There are arrived without having the base. I had to skip the hill because it was scheduled when I had bronchitis. I skipped the Coppi e Bartali, which would have been a tougher race for the legs anyway, and despite everything, I managed to do my Giro, which we won and which gave me the push to start again well.
It's thought that you young Italians should push harder to get out...
In this team, I really feel at home. With either my coach “Silvestro” Szmyd, who is Polish but also a little Italian, both with “Gaspa” (Enrico Gasparotto, sports director of the Bora Hansgrohe, ed.) who came this year. I think they left me a lot of space, even if in general it's a combination of things. To have space, you have to be well, have the right day, be healthyThere's usually a designated captain, but if someone's doing well, the team knows it and recognizes it. So they're given their space. I think, at least in my case. I feel very protected and also consideredIf the conditions are there, the space can be found.
We've actually seen you shoot a lot.
The problem is that if you skip your… turn, then you have to integrate with other people's spacesAnd anyway, when you go to a Monument race with a leader who can win, then all this talk is a little more scaled down. But in general, when someone is doing well, he has a lot of space in this team and in my opinion that's a positive thingIt's also true that having more freedom would allow you to take your measure. And I think having someone like Gasparotto on the team, who enjoys the Ardennes classics, for example, is a great opportunity for me.
Do you already know which program you will follow in 2023?
We spent a week in Germany and Otztal, Austria. We haven't said much about the schedule yet because everyone is on vacation right now. I just started talking to "Gaspa" about where to start the season, because clearly those who leave for Australia or Argentina must anticipate the recovery. That's the first thing we need to know, so now we'll also talk about it with Silvestro and we will decide whether to start in January or February in Europe.
If I could choose?
Honestly, I'd also like to leave soon. Then I think I would do another year with the last programI'd like to do the Giro, because I think it's perhaps still a little early for the Tour, especially given the fierce competition within the team. Before I jump in, it's best to take another step towards the Giro. Maybe I could evaluate the Tour when it starts from Italy, if that happens..
Leave early and do the Giro?
There will be work to do a bit of recovery, so as not to arrive at the Giro cookedI'd like to. I mentioned it to Szmyd at the end of the season, when we started talking about next year. We're starting off hot and pretty strong. And in the end... I think there is always time to slow down a little, while it is more difficult to decide to increaseI saw it this year, when I returned to Italy from quarantine in Mallorca. It took me a while to get back to my normal fitness.
What do you remember from the Giro?
It's been an incredible three weeks for all of us, because we arrived with some doubtsBuchmann had fallen at Liège, was badly hurt, and was in doubt until the very end. Also in Liège, Hindley had fallen ill. instead Kamna immediately won the stage on Etna, so it took some pressure off. Then Jai won on Block Haus and we all gained confidence. We never settled, we believed in Jai and that he could do it.. In Turin stage, we tried and it was certainly one of the most beautiful races of 2022, even if we didn't win.
Some say it was a boring Giro
Boring? What do you mean it was a boring Giro? I don't know what to say.All the men in the standings fought hard. As in the Tour, on certain days the captains' teams managed to save energy, so the breakaway arrived. However, I remember stages where the breakaway took a really long time to get away and it was absolutely not easy to catch it. I liked the 2022 Giro.
Was the Tour more fun?
At the Tour, there were early stages where wind was expected, but in the end nothing happened. The Granon stage was spectacular worth seeing, but after that too Jumbo has put itself in front to manageThey were so strong that they still controlled the game, with a pretty big lead. At the Giro between Carapaz and Hindley there were 10 seconds until the day of FedaiaI also think it was nice that we didn't know who would win until the last stage. That's why we never held back.
Will you do the Giro again?
This year for sure, if I were to do the Giro, Getting there fresh and seeing how the recovery goes would be a good testFor now, the general classification doesn't appeal to me, but I'd be curious to finish well there, even just to see if in the future I can be a protagonist in the tough stages as well. It would be a good test, let's put it that way..
Holidays at home?
I've been here, hanging out a bit with my friends who I obviously haven't seen much in the last few months, since I've been away a lot since leaving Canada. Last year I went on vacation, this year I really preferred to rest at homeI spent the first two weeks without even touching the bike. Today (yesterday for those reading, ed.) I did 50 kilometersAn hour and a half, just because I wanted to get some time on the bike. I'll start with a few easy rides, and then gradually, starting at the end of next week, I might start doing a little more, but not long distances. And then, depending on my calendar, I'll organize the actual training to try to climb another step.
