The intense month of April dedicated to the cycling Classics ends on Sunday 21stand then quickly move towards the Grand Tours season. This is done with the oldest one-day race on the international scene, the Liège-Bastogne-Liège, now in its 110th edition. The redefined ‘Doyenne’ has always been very popular with Italians, who can boast eleven successes in the past, the last one by Danilo Di Luca in 2009.
The last podium of an Italian was dated 2019, when Davide Formolo surrendered only to the Dane Jakob Fuglsang. This year too the Italian team will be very strong, and there is some hope of bringing home a prestigious result. There will be 19 Italians at the departure from Liège at 10.15amwho will try to play a leading role. Formolo himself will be there (Movistar Team)who during the week was one of the 44 heroes who managed to complete the Fleccia Wallone, finishing 24th on the Huy Wall after a truly tough day.
Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain – Victorious) lands in Belgium directly from the Tour of the Alps, fresh from the most positive week of his career. The 2001 class has shown that he has exceptional legs, that he can stay with the best uphill, that he knows how to respond to all attacks and it will certainly be the best card for Italy in this ‘Doyenne’. Tiberi is certainly focused on the Giro d’Italia, but when you put on your bib, and in conditions like that, you always set out to try to do well, and who knows, maybe you might break the bank.
A sign of life is certainly expected from Andrea Bagioli (Lidl-Trek), author of a start to the season with a clear decline compared to last year. Of course, he won’t be the captain of the team, but losing the wheels so early as we did on Wednesday (true in prohibitive weather conditions) even in Liège would be a very bad message. The tricolor shirt worn on the shoulders of Simone Velasco is also enteredin an Astana Qazaqstan Team that always speaks a lot of Italian with hips Christian Scaroni, Lorenzo Fortunato and Samuele Battistella.
The youngest athlete from the Bel Paese on the start list is Francesco Busatto, 21 years old from Intermarché – Wanty (which also fields an ambitious Lorenzo Rota)while the most expert is Diego Ulissi. The standard bearer of UAE Team Emirates was the protagonist of an excellent start to the season, even if today the entire Emirati team will be working for the Slovenian Tadej Pogacar. Another Italian that could be put on display is Matteo Sobreroin a BORA – hansgrohe without Primoz Roglic and without defined hierarchies, the blue often became the team’s point man along the way.
He took a ride at the recent Tour of the Alps instead Filippo Zana,, who is looking for immediate redemption at Liège. In the roster of Team Jayco AlUla will also be present Davide De Prettoone of the new names among young Italians who has tried to make way for the general public at the beginning of 2024.
LIEGE-BASTOGNE-LIEGE 2024, THE ITALIANS IN THE COMPETITION
Astana Qazaqstan Team: Simone Velasco, Samuele Battistella, Lorenzo Fortunato, Christian Scaroni
Intermarché – Wanty: Francesco Busatto, Lorenzo Rota
Team Jayco AlUla: Davide De Pretto, Filippo Zana
Groupama – FDJ: Lorenzo Germani
Bingoal WB: Giacomo Villa
Bahrain – Victorious: Antonio Tiberi
BORA – hansgrohe: Matteo Sobrero, Giovanni Aleotti
Lidl Trek: Andrea Bagioli
Alpecin – Deceuninck: Luca Vergallito
Movistar Team: Davide Formolo
UAE Team Emirates: Diego Ulissi
Soudal Quick-Step: Fausto Masnada
Tags: blue patrol nourished Tiberi
