No other country treats its national team with the same reverence as Italy . The maglia azzurra is one of cycling’s most hallowed garments and the competition to wear it at the world championships and Olympic Games is always fierce.
With that in mind, national coach Paolo Bettini has organised a training camp in Tuscany this week for a mixture of professional, under 23 and junior riders, and no fewer than six Selle Italia riders have been invited.
Colnago-CSF trio Enrico Battaglin, Sacha Modolo and Marco Coledan are all in Venturina, near Livorno for the next three days, along with Simone Ponzi (Astana), Fabio Felline (Androni-Venezuela) and the irrepressible Filippo Pozzato (Farnese Vini-Selle Italia), who is continuing his recovery from injury.
The riders will train along the Tuscan coast by day, while in the evening, they will attend a series of meetings on preparation and tactics chaired by Bettini. With the 2012 Olympic Games just five months away, the riders will even have a chance to practice their English ahead of the big event in London.
For Simone Ponzi, this week’s training camp is his first call-up to the national team since he was a junior. He knows it is a big opportunity to impress Bettini ahead of the major appointments later in the year.
“I’m really happy to have earned my first call-up as a professional,” Ponzi said. “I’ve already participated in four world championships as a junior, but this has another feel to it, even if it’s just for a training camp.
“The training camp will allow us to get to know each other better and form a group. It’s a big honour for me to be considered for the national team. This year there are the Olympics and the Worlds, and I want to play my cards as best I can to get selected.”
The riders will remain in Venturina until the end of the week. Ideal preparation for the scenic Strade Bianche race, which takes place around nearby Siena on Saturday.