Elisa Balsamo struck one blow, or rather two. This is the attack chosen by Lidl Trek from Cuneowho would like to work as a journalist when he grows up, for this piece dedicated to his start of the season. The 26-year-old graduate in Modern and Contemporary Literature started the year by raising her arms to the sky on the first day with her dorsal on her back in the inaugural stage of the Setmana Ciclista Volta Femenina de la Comunitat Valenciana, and then was able to achieve an encore in the final stage of the Spanish stage race.
With two masterful sprints he rediscovered the feeling for victory and the awareness of having returned to one hundred percent after the long stop, consequence of the fall in the first stage of the RideLondon Classique a year ago, which resulted in a serious injury to the lower part of the face with multiple wounds to the jaw. Now Elisa, who last month also fixed the last tooth damaged in the accident, can smile again and make us dream in a key year, which she couldn’t have started better than this.
What grade do you give to the 2024 debut?
«A nice 9. I am very happy with what I achieved in Spain, I like to start the year with the Volta Valenciana because it allows me to understand if I have worked well and which gaps to fill. I had a good winter, the results prove it, but there is always room for improvement, this is my philosophy. Even though I won two out of four stages, in the second stage, despite holding on, I had to give up on the last climb. The goal for the future is to become more resistant so that certain slopes are no longer lethal for me.”
You called both successes two team victories.
“I am. Those who followed the race saw that without the commitment of my teammates I would not have been able to take home either the first or the last stage. All the girls in Lidl Trek jerseys moved very well, led in the flagship by Ina-Yoko Teutenberg. They canceled breakaways, set a good pace uphill, repelled attacks and Yaya (Ilaria Sanguineti, who piloted her in the sprint already in the days of Valcar, ed.) managed the final as only she can do, always taking me to the right place at the right time . With a team like this it is easier to achieve full results. When I see my classmates working hard, I always feel the positive pressure to crown their efforts. There is nothing more beautiful than completing great team work.”
How important is it to win after a troubled season like the one you came from?
«Clearly it is a great satisfaction to start the season in this way. Winning in the first race of the year gives a strong boost of confidence, I know this well because this has been the case for the last three years. How the success came about, the performance behind it, also matters a lot. It is confirmation that the work done was good. Since the injury in 2023 I have fully recovered physically, a couple of weeks ago I fixed the last damaged tooth. Psychologically I still have a bit of fear, especially in certain race circumstances, but in general I am someone who looks more forward than back.”
The first thought after the first victory?
«I enjoyed the feeling of crossing the finish line with my arms raised, it’s special and I haven’t been able to do it for a while. The victory achieved in September in the first stage of the Simac Ladies Tour reassured me that I was competitive again, but it was a matter of millimetres. After the understandable euphoria of the moment, especially in a stage race, I try to quickly archive what happened and get back focused. I function like this, both when something good happens and when there is something bad.”
Your parents were also present in Valencia.
«Yes, mother Silvia and father Sergio are true enthusiasts (both have third level sports director cards and in the minor categories they directly followed their daughter’s growth, ed.) and they often come to my races. They are fundamental in my life and if I have reached these levels in cycling it is above all thanks to them. Seeing them at the start and finish of the stages, but also at the top of the hardest climb in the third stage when I was suffering was nice.”
Your first victory of 2024 arrived on San Faustino’s day, but the day before (remotely) you will have celebrated Valentine’s Day with “your” Davide Plebani.
«We have been together since 2019 and, being a runner himself, we are able to understand and support each other as best we can. I said it for my parents and the same thing goes for Davide, without him I wouldn’t be here. It is fundamental in my life before that for Elisa the cyclist. He is now gaining experience in the world of paracycling as a tandem guide with blind athletes and is studying for his pilot’s license. What if I fly with him? Of course, I trust blindly.”
What does your program include now?
«The spring classics. I enjoy them a lot and with the structured team we have this year we will be able to get some great satisfaction. Of all the great races that await us, I prefer the Trofeo Binda (which she won big on 17 March, ed.), the Gent-Wevelgem (where she came second on 24 March beaten in the photo finish by Lorena Wiebes, ed.) and the Tour of Flanders (who they will face on Sunday 31st, ed.). It will be a rich and super demanding year, I resumed calmly because after the fall in May last year I had little time to train. I started again with the Tour de France Femmes and raced a lot at the end of the season without having built a solid form. The goal for the winter was to start again from the foundations lost due to the forced stop, spending hours in the saddle, doing a lot of gym and strength work, even on the track. It is essential to have a strong physique to then perform on a bicycle.”
Speaking of Trofeo Binda, you participated in the 50th anniversary Grand Gala which brought together the winners of past editions in Cittiglio and you said nice words for the pioneers of women’s cycling.
«It was a fantastic evening, Mario Minervino and his collaborators had the brilliant idea of bringing together all the winners. With my teammate Elisa Longo Borghini we felt great admiration in front of these women representing various generations. They paved the way for us, the growth path of our movement is certainly not over, we continue to fight for true gender equality, but with their battles they have already brought us to a good point. Lidl Trek was one of the first teams to believe so much in women’s cycling, to want equality between the sexes. I am happy to be part of a team with these values.”
After the European Championships in which you took gold in the team pursuit with Martina Fidanza, Vittoria Guazzini, Letizia Paternoster and bronze in the Madison with Guazzini, when will we see you on the track again?
«I will participate in the last stage of the World Cup in Milton, Canada, in mid-April to bring home the points necessary to ensure Olympic qualification. The continental challenge went better than expected, facing certain efforts at the beginning of January is really challenging, but it was important to race together and refine the mechanisms. Not only did we survive, but we brought home the best possible result. We are satisfied and confident in the path that will take us to the Paris Olympic Games. I don’t have good memories of Tokyo, I fell in the Omnium Scratch test and then in the Madison, but the approach was also difficult and once in Japan the presence of Covid didn’t make things easy. We hope in France to dispel this complicated relationship with the five circles. With coach Marco Villa we have put together a good program. If I have to dream really big I would like to be part of the quartet and participate in the Madison, team pursuit and American pursuit are my two favorite specialties, and maybe in the Omnium. To be honest, I’m also curious to see the route of the road, at the bottom of the dream drawer there is also the online test.”
There are many ambitions between road and track, do we have to give up something?
“By force. In view of such an important year I have put university on hold but only temporarily, I have no intention of abandoning it. After graduating in March 2023 in Modern and Contemporary Literature at the University of Turin, I decided to take a sabbatical from studying. The season will be busy and the master’s degree is postponed but I’m already looking around, the faculties in the field of Communication inspire me. I will certainly continue my humanistic studies, in September I will re-enroll at university to obtain a second degree. Study and sport help each other, both activities stimulate me. My favorite pastimes remain reading books and solving puzzles during the week. On my bedside table at the moment there is Gramellini’s book Once Upon a Time Now.”
When you grew up you said that you would like to become a journalist, so you decide to start and end this interview.
«We could start by saying “Balsamo has struck a blow” and that, given that we are approaching a very important period, we hope the beginning is auspicious. I don’t lack the desire for redemption and determination, I hope to have better luck than a year ago. To conclude, spring is the right time to reap the fruits.”
from tuttoBICI in March
