Alberto Bettiol confirmed as Italy's leader at World Championships - "One of the spearheads within our team" coach says

The World Championships are likely to see an active Italian team, as some hints have been given on some of the leaders towards Wollongong, Alberto Bettiol being the likely leader after a strong season.

In talks with Bici.news, Italian's national team coach Daniele Benatti revealed that “Alberto Bettiol is one of the spearheads within our team. He is a certitude. The team will be ready to support him. Matteo Trentin will also be there, who is quick after a difficult race. Giacomo Nizzolo will not be part of the selection again".

Bettiol has finishes Étoile de Bessèges in second place, has finished a stage at the Tour de Suisse and Tour de France in second place. Although he underperformed in the cobbled classics, his climbing prowess came forward this year. His second spot in Mende at the Tour revealed very strong capacity on the short steep climbs, in which Wollongong will be decided. He's recently finished the Deutschland Tour in seventh place despite working for Ruben Guerreiro.

He also confirmed that Diego Ulissi would not be riding the World as a request of UAE Team Emirates who are looking to score points. Although unconfirmed, Edoardo Affini and Matteo Sobrero are likely to be present at the road race aswell, following the time-trial event.