Very intense moment of the season for men’s cycling: we move from the Giro d’Italia to the Tour de France, in between many races also to prepare for important events such as the National Championships and the Paris Olympics. The Tour of Slovenia starts tomorrow: five stages scheduled for this 30th edition.
The route is varied: first two stages dedicated to sprinters, then come the mountain stages which will decide the general classification (especially the uphill finish in Krvavec).
Pure climbers are therefore among the favorites for final success. Italy can field a quality card like Filippo Zana: the Team Jayco AlUla rider is the defending champion, so he starts with the number one on his back and has to defend the title. The Spaniard challenges him Pello Bilbao (Bahrain – Victorious), ready to fly at the Grande Boucle, and the Australian Michael Storer (Tudor Pro Cycling Team), recently in the top-10 at the Giro.
There is no shortage of quality runners: from the landlord Matej Mohoric (Bahrain-Victorious), the first Maglia Rosa of the Giro is Jhonatan Narvaez (Ineos Grenadiers), passing through Ben Healy (EF Education – EasyPost), while for the sprints the most awaited is certainly Dylan Groenewegen (Team Jayco AlUla).
At home in Italy to follow obviously Giulio Pellizzari after the spectacular performances in the Corsa Rosa. Will the very young Italian athlete try to play a role as captain? There is also space among the blues Elia Viviani (INEOS Grenadiers), in full Olympic preparation, the young Davide Piganzoli (Team Polti Kometa), who will try to play his cards in the mountains, and the veteran Domenico Pozzovivo (VF Group – Bardiani CSF – Faizanè).
