Vincenzo Nibali got the Giro del Trentino off to a perfect start as his Astana team was in a class of its own in the opening team time trial. On the short, flat 12.1km course, the Kazakh team put no less than 14 seconds into Mikel Landa’s Sky team and Domenico Pozzovivo’s Ag2r team which allowed Valerio Agnoli to become the first leader of the big Italian stage race.

 

We have gathered several reactions.

 

Valerio Agnoli: It was a spontaneous gift from my close friend Nibali

It was a day of celebration for Astana, and particularly for Nibali’s long-time domestique Valerio Agnoli, who wore the first leader’s jersey of Giro del Trentino Melinda: a well-received reward for the 31-year-old Italian, one of the closest men to the Astana’ leader.

 

“My relationship with Vincenzo goes well beyond the job,” explained the fuchsia jersey,” and today he made me a beautiful gift: I was not supposed to be on his wheel at the start, but when he saw where I was he probably decided in a second. At the finish, I didn’t even realize I had passed first!

 

"I never expected to passthe finish line in first position. It was a great gift from the team. I have to thank my teammates one by one.I do not often see my name at the top of the ranking.

 

"We were really strong - a final average of over 53 km/h with peaks of 70 km/h - and the boys have shown to be very smart and prepared.

 

"This shirt is a dream, a wonderful early birthday gift that Vincenze wanted to give me. But the captain remains him, of course, and his alter ego remain Scarponi and Fuglsang. I enjoy this moment and tomorrow I will be in my place to work for Vincenzo. This victory makes us happy, but our goal is to win the Giro del Trentino and above all to prepare for the Giro. For me, May will be an important month, because my second child will be born and it will be called Luis Leon. I want to dedicate this win to my wife Maria Giovanna and our little Greta.

 

"I am very happy. You know, between me and Vincenzo there is a special feeling, something that goes beyond the simple professional relationship. And what he did here confirms his character. It was a spontaneous gesture that had not been decided before. Also because the team time trial has particular dynamics that can change in an instant. At the finish line it required a look, Vincenzo turned around, then my wheel passed his. But I did not believe it, I was really convinced that he was first. The important thing however, was the team result. We did well and got a good result already at the first opportunity after the hard work of the two weeks at altitude on Mount Teide. We were very concentrated and in the race we did not make any mistakes." 

 

Agnoli has not won a race for several years.

 

“It was in 2005. I was very young, just starting out. Then my career took a certain turn, to be at the serivce of the captains. And I'm happy as well. Because the important thing is to always give the maximum, for a common goal. I learned a lot from Ivan Basso and now I'm putting those teachings to Vincenzo’s service. 

 

“The Giro will be a great challenge, but we are ready. At the Teide training camp we have worked hard, but it has created an exceptional spirit which will be our strength. Vincenzo gives us great confidence, because he knows he can count on us at any time. The leader's jersey in Trentino? I'm ready to give it away immediately. He is the captain, I know my limits and my role.”

 

"It was important to start on the right foot,” commented sport director Alexander Shefer,” and today's victory is also a good signal for the next Giro d'Italia"

 

"Tomorrow is the first uphill and it will be up to us to control the race, we are prepared and we aim to do well at the Anras finish"

 

The Giro del Trentino Melinda leader’s jersey comes a reward for many years of restless work for his leaders: 

 

“I think it’s important in life to do your work with soul and dedication. Life as a domestique is not easy, but I feel blessed to have been riding on the side of great champions like Ivan Basso and Vincenzo Nibali, and I have always felt part of their success. Today, again, the team put on a huge effort, and for once I was on the top of it.”

 

With the top riders in the space of fourteen seconds, tomorrow the classification is all but certain to be revolutionized by the uphill finish to Anras at the end of stage 2, 220 km from Arco to the Tirol’s town. A 4 km ascent, short and explosive, where many riders could pay the toll after a weary and lengthy effort.

 

“I would obviously like to keep the jersey,” Agnoli said, “but our priority will be to bring Vincenzo in the best position into the final kilometres. And then, there are other teammates I should pay close attention to, namely Michele Scarponi and Jakob Fugslang who are riding great.”

 

Optimistic Vincenzo Nibali: This shows that the form is good

 "This is a team victory and it is very important. It was a very violent effort because it was only twelve kilometers and we did well in all of them. We started strong and in the final part we were able to still gain important seconds and so we are very satisfied with our performance,” Nibali told Spaziociclismo.
 

"It was a good start to the race and a good response to the hard work we have done at the training camp on Mount Teide in the last two weeks. We're all fine and we want to do well. Even Michele (Scarponi, ed), who was at the back, has done well and I must say we are very satisfied.

 

"After a period of hard work in preparation for the most important events of the season, the condition looks good and now we will see in the next stages. It is important to get feedback from the main rivals in the Giro, not forgetting that after Trentino we have Liège - Bastogne - Liège and then a week off before facing the Giro .
 

"Liege is a very difficult race even if you are 100% of the condition, it may not be enough. I tried in 2012 where I finished second despite being the best but other times I have also been there with good form and failed to make the desired result. It is a difficult and fascinating race also because of this. In short, it is an excellent test for the Giro.”

 

Gianni Moscon in the white jersey: I am only here to help Landa

Team Sky produced an impressive performance to finish second in the opening team time trial stage at the Giro del Trentino.

 

The team were the first down the ramp and stopped the clock in 13 minutes 44 seconds, completing the 12.1km course at an average of 53km/h. Seven men crossed the line together in Torbole, with Gianni Moscon leading us home from team leader Mikel Landa.

 

Astana were the second squad to hit the road and they came in 14 seconds quicker, in what proved to be the stage-winning time.

 

Valerio Agnoli (Astana) moved into the race lead, while Moscon's efforts were enough to put him into both the young rider and mountains jerseys.

 

Ag2r-La Mondiale recorded the same time as Team Sky to finish third, while Bora-Argon posted an effort just two seconds slower to sit fourth.

 

Gazprom-RusVelo were the last of the 17 teams to take on the course but a disjointed final kilometre put paid to their attempts to win the day and they finished fifth in Italy.

 

Trentino is Moscon's home race and he was understandably delighted to move into the young rider's jersey, but quick to point out that his focus remains on helping Landa win the title.

 

The young Italian said: "We did a really good job today as a team. It was our first team time trial together and I think we should be happy with the result.

 

"It's a big result for me to win these jerseys, but our focus as a team is to win the GC with Mikel. I will work really hard with the team to achieve this."

 

Looking ahead to stage two, which has a sting in the tail, Moscon added: "I did a recon of the route on Sunday. It's a strange finish - it's very short and very steep. It will be very interesting to see how the race unfolds."

 

Sky: We would have preferred to be closer to Astana

Sport Director Brett Lancaster admitted the performance wasn't perfect, but believes the younger riders will benefit from the experience.

 

He said: "The group split up a couple of times, but they regrouped really well, and we're only 14 seconds off Astana. It would have been nice to be a little bit closer, but it was two of the guys' first ever TTTs, and they rode really well actually. We'll see what happens tomorrow.

 

"I don't think we should look for excuses. They rode pretty well, not optimally, but I think in the future once these guys have got a couple more TTTs under their belts we'll see improvement."

Ag2r: To be third with a team of climbers is a great start

"There's something to be pleased with at the start of the Giro del Trentino,” Ag2r sports director Didier Jannel said. “At the intermediate time, we were three seconds faster than Team Sky. Without a specialist against the clock, we suffered a little on the way back with the headwind. This third place with a team of climbers is good for the morale and it allows us to approach the Arco-Anras stage and its difficult uphill finish with serenity. There are bonuses up for grabs for us.”
 

Note that Romain Bardet was awarded the red sprints jersey.

 

Disappointed Bora-Argon 18: We had hoped to do better

In today’s opening stage of the Giro del Trentino in Riva del Garda, BORA – ARGON 18 was not able to repeat the victory from last year. Still the team had a good start with a strong 4th place.

 

The best time on the 12.1-kilometre-long course for the team time trial was for Team Astana in 13:30. With a time of 13:46, BORA – ARGON 18 was just 2’’ behind second placed Team Sky which were in the same second as AG2R Mondiale in 3rd spot.

 

For the next days, this result means a solid position for the GC ambitions of the team. With 5 riders who could theoretically play a role in the general classification, BORA – ARGON 18 is also able to surprise with different tactics.

 

“The 4th place is not quite what I expected, also because we finished just 2’’ from the podium. But I have to admit that the team did a good job and delivered the optimum. There have been no mistakes I could see from the car and they also stayed very compact together until the end. Now we have to see who has got the legs to follow the best riders in the mountains. But we have a very strong team here and I hope there will be some opportunities for us regarding tactics,” said Enrico Poitschke, sports director.