Filippo Ganna returns to victories in season "full of ups and downs"

Filippo Ganna had an excellent spring, but at the Giro d'Italia he was forced to abandon before the time-trial he hoped for the most because of Covid-19. It was a tough hit, but he has since returned to competition and has taken his first win yesterday at the national championships.

"This season has been full of ups and downs, and the hardest blow was the Giro d'Italia, because I wanted so much to do it and to finish it well, with a team that proved to be of a high level," he told Cyclingpro.net after the victory yesterday. "The return home was a hard blow, but the sport is such that you have to know how to get back in the bath and find your motivation."

He was set to ride the Tour de Suisse upon returning to the road, but had to postpone it and instead raced La Route d'Occitanie. There were no time-trials there, but he nevertheless showed himself with good form, sprinting to fifth - third from the peloton - on the final hilly day of the race, proving he was riding at a competitive level. In the time-trial it was a matter of riding his own level, he's done so and defeated Mattia Cattaneo and Matteo Sobrero on a course that suited them more than the pure time-trialist.

"For the road race, I don't consider myself a favourite, because of the difference in altitude and because there will be 200 kilometers more than today," he continued. "In Saturday's race for the Ineos Grenadiers, there will only be three riders and we will be up against teams of more than ten riders. We will not be able to hold the reins of the race: I expect a fast start, because many teams will want to send riders in a breakaway to stay in the peloton. But the Italians' road race is still a big question mark."

After that Ganna travels to an altitude camp where he'll prepare the final months of the season. The World Championships are a big goal as he looks to take back the rainbow jersey. Afterwards the goals are yet to be decided, but there is a clear path to follow for the time being.

"This year it feels a bit like reliving the Settimana Tricolore, with so many titles and so many categories gathered in one place, in a Trentino that always offers fantastic conditions for events of this kind. really nice to be in touch with the caddies, juniors, under 23s, boys and girls who approach you, ask for photos and autographs, or maybe advice. nice to help feed the dreams of these young people, and to offer the public the spectacle of complete cycling, which values all categories: I hope for a great response from the cycling public for the next few days as well," he concluded.