"I remember attacking on a descent because it was very wet" - Elisa Longo Borghini remembers the race that changed her life

Elisa Longo Borghini of Lidl-Trek recalled the race that changed her life and cycling career in an interview with Cycling Weekly. The Italian is considered a classics specialist, previously winning Paris-Roubaix. Nevertheless, she sees another race as significantly changing her career.

"The ride that changed me was [Trofeo Alfreda] Binda 2013, which sounds like an eternity ago. In fact, it was a while ago, but I won the race," she explains. "It was a very cold, rainy and gray day. It was the second victory in my life as an elite rider."

Longo Borghini, who was still riding for the Hitec Products KLA team at the time, remembers that a later teammate was the only one who could keep up with her: "I remember attacking on a descent because it was very wet. I thought, 'Okay, I'll try to attack here', and then I went off and only Spratty [ Amanda Spratt ] could follow me. We stayed together for a while and then I dropped her on the last climb. When I crossed the finish line I was really cold, but I didn't feel anything because there was so much to enjoy."

Contrary to today's "rituals" after a race, perhaps grabbing a fresh drink on the way to the award ceremony, Elisa Longo Borghini spent a good part of the day celebrating with her family and friends in a restaurant: "I remember that we went to a restaurant afterwards and ate two pizzas. I think I ate two pizzas," she says with a laugh, adding that she was still hungry afterwards due to the exertions of the race.

"The reason why I decided to do this race is that I was still very young at the time and had no idea where I could be in the elite field. It was there that I realized that I could actually be quite good and that my dreams could come true. And here I am now, talking about it," she concludes.