The Grand Tour and then the stage race that follows: is that always a good thing? They say that after three weeks you have a great leg, so why not make the most of it?
In these days we have seen several riders who after the Tour of Italy They took part in the Dauphiné or the Tour de Suisse or are about to leave for Slovenia: Tiberi, Fortunato, Piganzoli, Quintana, Caruso, Conci (these last two can be seen in the opening photo)…
What does this calendar choice entail? And what happens physically? There's a quote from a few days ago by Lorenzo Fortunato which returns with force: «Now more work is done at the altitude training camp than at the Giro. And so when you go racing, you reap the fruits of your labor. The Grand Tours are no longer used for training. It happened to me that I did the Giro d'Italia and then I went to Slovenia or to Adriatica Ionica Race, where the level was a little lower and I was saved. But as things are going now, the Grand Tour must be the last act of a journey that began earlier for this very reason».
Michael Bartoli, trainer of many professionals and of the Bahrain-Victorious, is ready to answer our questions.
Michele, the grand Giro, the Giro d'Italia obviously in this case, and then a stage race: can you take advantage of the condition that these three weeks leave?
Io I'm changing the old theories a bit, for me it's not like that anymore. Today, we're so pushed to the limit, both mentally and physically, that something just doesn't work. If after the big Giro, you're focused and want to eat well again, get the right amount of rest... then great, but it's very, very complicated. Before, the opposite was true: it was difficult to go slowly!
Why? What has changed now?
The way you run, you weigh the grams of food, you have to consume a precise amount of carbohydrates, the stress in the race and above all you already get to the top with the weight without that extra kilo, the condition is immediately high after the great work upstream (Fortunato's theory, ed.). You really have to think about many things and when you get to the end of your Giro you feel like giving up. And that's normal, that's understandable.
Several Giro d'Italia riders have gone to the Dauphiné and others to Switzerland: there are six days between the Giro and the Dauphiné, 13 between the Giro and Switzerland, and 16 between the Giro and Slovenia. Does this difference matter?
Yes and in my opinion it gets worse as the days go by. If you have to have a tooth removed, it's best to do it right away. Of course, it always depends on the athlete's mentality. But it's not easy to maintain concentration after the Giro. Holding on for another six days is perhaps still doable, But for Switzerland, it becomes tougher. Yes, you have a little more recovery time. You can do some small training sessions again, but the big goal is over now.
We understand that the mental component is central, but what about from a purely physiological, muscular point of view?
It's hard to separate the two. When you finally get a taste of rest and tranquility, after you're tired, the going gets tough. Better to stop, put a point and then resume after recovering. Of course, I'm speaking for the Dauphiné and Switzerland, and for those who need to go there to do well. But if you're coming from the Giro and know you'll be breaking away, these races don't give you anything, or very little. Also, mind you, I'm not saying the Grand Tour doesn't leave you in good shape, but mentally it weighs more heavily today. It's either not feasible or much more difficult.
What if it was for a one-day race?
It changes everything. The Tour for the Olympics (or the Vuelta for the World Championships) are the best. Concentration is at its peak there, and the greatest benefits are derived. The Giro is the only major tour that doesn't have these kinds of objectives.
Then, unless you're Pogacar, if you don't aim for the general classification, you can manage a great Giro in view of the one-day race. Let's think about Van der Poel last year with the Tour…
Exactly, that's the best preparation. You don't have the stress of the rankings, you can give up from time to time, you can manage the efforts, you eat well, you keep a rhythm, you get massages every day.
And instead, returning to the stage race that follows the Grand Tour: is there a difference whether a young rider or an experienced one competes? For example, we saw Tiberi in the Dauphiné and Caruso in the Swiss...
For me, it's worse for the young player, also because in addition to a recovery situation, which the expert is perhaps more accustomed to, the issue of motivation returns. What can a placement in the Dauphiné or the Swiss Championships give an athlete like Caruso? For Tiberi it's a different story: he's young and even though it didn't go well, I don't condemn his choice to try.
Clear…
I think about Fortunato, for example. He had a good Giro, but in the Dauphiné, despite showing off well, how much of a struggle did he have? He was trailing 20-25 riders while at the Giro he was among the best. However, a Dauphiné makes more sense for him than for a Caruso. For him, a fifth place also becomes important for the sake of a contract, visibility, and importance.
