Video: Pinotti says this time in pink is better than the first
Italian delighted with taking maglia rosa for second timeBeaming broadly and clearly enjoying the moment, Marco Pinotti soaked up the sensation of being crowned the first leader of the 2011 Giro d’Italia at the finish in Torino yesterday. The city was thronged with crowds, both for the Giro itself, for the celebration of 150 years of Italian unity and also for the Alpini festival, which celebrates the elite mountain fighting group of the Italian army created in 1872. The atmosphere was one of a giant street party, and the Italian received plenty of cheers when he donned the Maglia Rosa. “It is a special feeling being in Torino, first capital of Italy, 150 years of unity, with the Festival of Alpini,” he told VeloNation after the stage in a video interview. “A lot of people here were calling my name. The team did a perfect job. Every member of the [...]
Video Interview: Savio believes that Rujano can turn back the clock to top Giro form
It’s been a full six years since José Rujano blew people’s expectations away with a superb ride in the Giro d’Italia. The diminutive Venezuelan climber impressed greatly in his debut performance, winning at Sestrière, taking both the King of the Mountains and Combativity competitions and finishing third overall. Tipped by some to be the next big thing in cycling, Rujano hasn’t impressed much since then. His 2006 season with QuickStep was a modest one, then a succession of contracts with Unibet.com, Caisse d’Epargne and ISD-Neri were not at anything like the same level as his standout season. Victory in last year’s Tour de Langkawi did suggest he was back on track but the team was not given a wildcard for the Giro; rather than competing in Italy, the 29 year old had to instead be satisfied with results such as third in the 2.2 Vuelta a Columbia. This season, he’s [...]
Giro d’Italia: Farrar hungry for bunch sprints (video)
American sprinter believes form is good, will ‘find out today’Having built up well for this year’s Giro d’Italia, American rider Tyler Farrar is psyched to aim for the third stage win of his career. He sees stage one as a perfect opportunity for a big gallop. “This is one of the most straightforward sprint days of the Giro…big flat stage, fairly straightforward finish, pretty much a guaranteed sprint,” he said, shortly before the start in Alba. “I see four stages that I think that I’m pretty sure will arrive in a sprint. Then there’s two or three others that maybe they will, maybe they won’t, probably not…but we’ll of course try.” Farrar had originally hoped to spend time in the pink jersey, but Garmin-Cervélo’s fifth place in yesterday’s team time trial has made that more complicated. They conceded 24 seconds to HTC Highroad and so he has a big deficit [...]
Video: Cavendish celebrates Giro TTT win, could take over pink jersey tomorrow
HTC Highroad sprinter praises team-mate PinottiMarco Pinotti may have been the one to take the race lead, but British rider Mark Cavendish and his HTC Highroad team-mates were also extremely happy at the end of the opening day of the Giro d’Italia. Victory in the team time trial by ten seconds over closest rivals Team RadioShack was decisive, and the American squad has started the race in the best way possible. “It is incredible. We said on Thursday that we can win here,” he said in a video interview with VeloNation after the podium presentation. “The team went perfectly in training and straight away I said that if we got things 100 percent right, we will win on Saturday. The guys were incredible today. I was so proud to be part of that team.” Cavendish was first across the line two years ago, taking the pink jersey then when the [...]
Tejay Van Garderen Video Interview: I think I can win the Tour of California
Talented 22 year old American aiming highAs the Amgen Tour of California approaches, prodigiously talented HTC Highroad rider Tejay Van Garderen has laid out a clear target for himself: the top step of the podium in the country’s most prestigious cycling event. “I think I can win. That is going to be my goal going into the race, I want the victory” he told VeloNation in a video interview conducted recently. “I am not under any illusions of grandeur, [believing] that I am going to just run away with it, that I am just going to drop Levi, drop Horner, to leave them for dust. “But the goal is to win. I know it is going to be hard, but I am shooting high.” Van Garderen was speaking to VeloNation at an at-times noisy team hotel in the run-up to Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Relaxed in himself but also very ambitious, he came [...]
Emilia Fahlin Video Interview: Thumbs up to Tour of California TT, talks about goals ahead
Swedish rider discusses her entry to the sport, her career to date and some targetsAt just 22 years of age, Emilia Fahlin is one of HTC Highroad’s up and coming talents, a rider who could well have a big future in store. The Swedish rider has already won one national road race title and two in the time trial, and last year was second in the time trial at the European championships. She was part of the squad which won the City Trophy Elsy Jacobs team time trial in Luxembourg. team time trial on Friday, this group showing the benefits of a two-day TTT camp held in Germany last Tuesday and Wednesday. While she is not presently scheduled to do the Open de Suède Vargarda World Cup team time trial in July, she has another big goal in store: the women’s time trial to be held at the Tour of [...]