The time-trial World Champion is currently in southern France getting his first racing kilometers of the season in the Etoile de Bessèges, where he already showed great legs on the opening day.
Over the last couple of seasons Filippo Ganna has had very similar goals and has succeeded in them perfectly. In both 2020 and 2021 he became world champion in the individual discipline and it's likely that he's going to try going for the hat-trick, but that isn't necessarily the first thing on his mind.
"I’ve been waiting for this moment since finishing January training camp and you always hope to arrive at the first race with good legs. The goals for this season are really clear for me, the first part is the Classics. These are always big races, you have to arrive so focussed with the goals clear in your mind. There are some big goals for this season, San Remo will be a big race for us, but that’s just one of many, but for the time being I prefer to keep them to myself, I don’t want to give it all away."
He has also supported both Tao Geogheghan Hart and Egan Bernal to their Giro d'Italia glory, whilst at the same time netting a total of six stage wins for himself, it is quite hard to imagine how he could've improved. His goal won't be to improve on those in 2022 though, as he's targeting a different set of goals.
Filippo Ganna at the start of Etoile de Bessèges
Although not confirmed, the Italian is expected to be a the startline in Copenhagen for the Grand Départ of the Tour de France, where he has good chances of putting on the first yellow jersey of the race. Before that though he has big ambitions, as he is set to do a set of stage-races in preparation for his big early-season goals which will be Milano-Sanremo and Paris-Roubaix.
"In 2021 we did well as a team, but when you start a new year you always hope that you’re going to do better, which is never easy but we are such a good team. The one thing you hope for is to kick the year off with some good results early, then it sets the tone, some early celebrations are always useful to get the motivation soaring."
Ganna finished 7th on the crosswind-swept opening day of the Etoile de Bessèges after a strong performance protecting Richard Carapaz. Although it is unlikely that he will be one of the main contenders for the GC, he is never to be discounted as the race finishes off with a 11 kilometers long time-trial in Alès.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Podcast sounds great. Two so called experts stating the f*cking obvious.wrsty04-11-2026
- A mindset that reminds me of Tim Declerq. I loved watching that guy just pound away the kilometers, hours at the front, holding an entire breakaway in check on his own. Bjerg seems like a similar guy. Curling, the team sport.RidesHills04-11-2026
- He will be lol, but he can still win on the climbs hahaawp04-11-2026
- I would love to have his inconsistency. How many wins this year? 2 TdF stages, a WC, a Euro championship, San Sebastian, multiple wins early year. Monument podiums. I'd take it. I don't think he has a chance in the TdF, but he is still amazing.mij04-11-2026
- He's not going to win the TdF. Maybe if they make every single stage a TT he could win. But I still believe Tadej would just sharpen his TT skills and win.mij04-11-2026
- You beat me to it. Should he make a full recovery (likely) and go light early in the year. One, two, three. Don't ask me, I don't give a damn. Should he be on a Feel-Like-He's-Fixin'-to-Die High.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- The deciding factor may be the (TBD) number of (any type of) kilometers without Pogacar.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- Unexplained chronic fatigue is an all too common bitch. The hard to find definitive answer may lie buried in gut mechanisms. A mystery of the deep.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- It's weird to say Evenepoel would be making a "serious mistake by adding the 2027 Giro d'Italia to his calendar, warning that such a decision could even be interpreted as a lack of confidence in his ability to win the Tour de France." It may well be a mistake but with so many commentators (of all sorts) continuously claiming almost everything Remco does as being a mistake, almost nobody should care what the pundits and the disparagers should say. His team may not want him to do the Giro, and that matters. But it's possibly or probably up to Remco to decide and it may not have to be decided on until a month or so ahead of the race. Yes , Remco is inconsistent much like the majority of the best riders but he's enjoying a period of not having been recently injured (or sick). Whatever he does he need not be concerned with critics who will second guess any perceived failure no matter what. I suspect he will have enough other races on his schedule so he won't be considering it. But the worst reason to not race it is because of what some will say - humorous that be.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- I'll say clean sweep all grand tourZamorano04-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment