Trek-Segafredo have been pressured to pivot their Giro d’Italia targets simply days earlier than the beginning of the race following Giulio Ciccone’s COVID-19 constructive.
The Italian, who was excited concerning the Grande Partenza in his dwelling area of Abruzzo, was anticipated to struggle for mountain stage victories and be a GC challenger on the Corsa Rosa this month.Â
In his absence Trek-Segafredo will hunt for stage wins on all terrains. The US-registered WorldTour crew will look to former world champion Mads Pedersen and 2019 fifth-place finisher Bauke Mollema for fulfillment.Â
Younger Eritrean climber Natnael Tesfatsion makes his Grand Tour debut for the crew, whereas countryman Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier additionally rides together with Daan Hoole, Toms Skujins, Otto Vergaerde, and Alex Kirsch.
Trek-Segafredo introduced their Giro d’Italia line-up on social media, utilizing an Italian film theme for every rider. Pedersen was James Bond in Venice, whereas Mollema was proven as Jep Gambardella within the The Nice Magnificence film.
Final yr Juan Pedro López defended the maglia rosa for ten days after ending second on stage 3 to Mount Etna. He went on to complete tenth general and received one of the best younger rider’s white jersey.Â
He’s additionally absent this yr and so Trek-Segafredo produce other plans for the Corsa Rosa.
“Initially of a Grand Tour there’s all the time a perspective, an concept, a purpose and a finest situation to attempt to obtain,” crew directeur sportif Gregory Rast mentioned forward of Saturday’s opening time trial stage.
“However it’s unattainable to foretell, as of now, what is going to occur within the 21 days of racing. Biking is such an unpredictable sport. We should subsequently have a look at the Giro as 21 totally different objectives to intention for, the place the crew, all collectively, should focus every day.
“We should even have the power and the flexibility maybe to adapt our ways in the course of the race, protecting in thoughts what we got here to the Giro to do: win levels.
“After all, not having Ciccone is an actual pity for us. Our possibilities of victory within the hardest levels, within the Alps and Dolomites, have been lowered quite a bit.
“Due to his power on the climbs and the situation he confirmed, it was unattainable to switch him 100%. However that is it and we’re now centered on how we carve out our personal area on the times when he would have been our chief.”
Ciccone can depend three mountain stage wins on his Giro palmarès – at Sestola in 2015 with Bardiani, after which at Ponte di Legno in 2019 and at Cogne final yr with Trek. He additionally received the latest of Trek’s 4 Giro jerseys, taking the maglia azzurra of the mountain classification 4 years in the past.
Pedersen, who together with Mollema, is hoping to finish a ‘grand slam’ of Grand Tour stage wins on the race, may very well be in rivalry for the ciclamino factors jersey, which Giacomo Nizzolo received for the crew in 2015 and 2016.
“Mads might be our level of reference, the rider who, resulting from expertise and potential, deserves to be thought of our captain on the Giro,” Rast mentioned.Â
“We noticed him on the Classics, we noticed him on the Grand Excursions final yr. Mads is without doubt one of the best riders on the planet and he can struggle on many alternative levels.
“His precedence to win a stage can be ours. We’ll focus our efforts on battling with sturdy opponents that, in fact, are conscious of what Mads can do. By way of the factors jersey, I feel that’s one thing we are able to discuss on the way in which.”
Vergaerde, Kirsch, and Hoole are alongside for the experience in a assist function, whereas Skujins, Ghebreigzabhier, and Tesfatsion can have freedom to go for the breakaways.
For Mollema, a constant performer with two Giro prime 10s on his file, a stage win to finish his set can be the purpose, whereas one other strong GC outcome is not out of the query.
“He’s chasing a dream that, for his palmarès, can be just like the icing on the cake,” mentioned Rast. “We wish to assist him understand that. Bauke is a strong rider, skilled and sensible sufficient to identify one of the best alternatives in the course of the Giro.
“He’s a die-hard rider and when the race turns into powerful, when fatigue units in, like within the second and third week, he’ll be capable of emerge. He’ll have his probabilities and we’ll associate with him.”
