STRADE 🤩 SATURDAY 🤩 The big day is here, as the peloton get ready to take on the epic challenge of #StradeBianche. We'll roll out from 10:15 GMT, with TV coverage along at 13:00, via Discovery+/Eurosport/Max 📺💻📱
Supporting and testing role for Geraint Thomas at Strade Bianche: "For me to be here the main thing was the gravel in the Giro and the Tour"
CyclingSaturday, 02 March 2024 at 13:02
Geraint Thomas is no longer a rider that is frequently racing the one-day events, but this Saturday he's made his presence felt at Strade Bianche. He's looking to support an ambitious INEOS Grenadiers team, but also test the equipment and his legs ahead of similar races he'll have later in the year.
"Still a massive race, but it's a bit strange. it's been a while since I've done one-day races, couple of Canadian ones, but the last big one I did was this in 2019, so a few years [ago]," Thomas shared with CyclingPro.net at the start in Siena. "We have two strong leaders in Tom [Pidcock] and Kwiato,(Michal Kwiatkowski, ed.) I will support them as best I can."
Thomas is not having ambitions of his own to race for a result on this day, like last year he has a calm start to the year with domestique duties on paper. However with both Giro d'Italia and Tour de France - which he will race consecutively - having stages that feature gravel sectors, the Welshman wanted to get the feel of what he'll find later in the year.
"For me to be here the main thing was the gravel in the Giro and the Tour, a good chance to test the equipment, and obviously it's an amazing race i's something I always wanted to comeback to," he admits. "I'll get stuck in and do my bit for the boys. I'm all in for the boys, a short steep aggressive [race], I don't think I have the punch I haven't done that much in training."
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