Interview Elia Viviani: “Ganna and Milan, our stars at the Giro”

From the final straight to tactical meetings, from the Olympic track to the seat of a car. Elia Viviani has changed perspective but not direction: cycling remains the center. Only today he looks at it from another angle, namely from the window of the Ineos Grenadiers flagship. But the head is always there, inside the race.

Elia, how do you find yourself in this new adventure?

“It’s a role that has always been part of me. First as a leader, then as a more experienced runner, I have always been a point of reference for my teammates, especially for young people. Passing on what I learned was something I wanted to do. Sports director? It’s not the job of my dreams, if I’m honest, but it’s the most useful one for staying in this world.”

What do you like and what don’t you like?

“I like being at the races, talking to the kids, helping them read the race. It’s something you have inside you as an athlete and that you can also replicate from the team car. Then, of course, the result no longer depends directly on you, and this changes everything. The most complex part is the work behind the scenes, which is enormous.”

Speaking of behind the scenes: how was the Paris-Roubaix reconnaissance?

“I learned that the sports director is not the ‘master’ that many imagine. The real work is done first: meeting at home with the manager, planning the race, studying the route. The race is just the icing on the cake. The reconnaissance serves to build on any successes. This year it hasn’t arrived, but the work done can be useful for the future”.

What was the atmosphere like in the team?

“Excellent. We were coming off the victory at Dwars door Vlaanderen with Filippo Ganna, his first success in a classic. There was enthusiasm. I was behind Ian Stannard, the Ineos sports director in the classics. In those days you work a lot in contact with the athletes: you stop, analyze the sectors, identify the key points where you can attack or where it is most dangerous. That’s where you can give concrete advice.”

You have already experienced important moments in the flagship. What do you feel is most yours?

“There have been several. The first I remember is Joshua Tarling’s second place in the time trial of the UAE Tour behind Evenepoel. Ganna’s victories, for example, I also feel a bit like mine. The first of these was the time trial at the Tirreno-Adriatico, even if Leo Basso and Dario Cioni were on the car and that one perhaps shouldn’t be counted.”

“At Pogacar’s Milan-Sanremo I was the main director, I spoke directly with the riders. On other occasions however I had different roles: there are those who guide, those who manage tactics, those who manage logistics. It’s teamwork even off the bike.”

Looking at the Giro d’Italia: how important is the track for today’s riders?

“For athletes like Ganna or Jonathan Milan it is fundamental. The track is the place where they find the pedal stroke, the brilliance, the power in sprints. It’s a question of balance: you have to know when to go there and when not. But it remains a key step to reach the highest level.”

You were a symbol of the Italian track. What does his three Olympic medals in three Olympics mean?

“I’m proud, of course. But I’m even more proud for having contributed to relaunching the movement. When I started, the Italian track was practically absent. In London 2012 I was the only Italian athlete at the Games: I went from just missing a medal to gold in Rio 2016. A very strong generation came after me: Ganna already has extraordinary results and has the same number of medals as me between track and road. This perhaps makes me happier than the medals themselves.”

Let’s go back to the Giro: do you like the route?

“Yes, and it is very marked by the 42 kilometer time trial, the tenth stage from Viareggio to Massa: there you will make a big difference, even by 2-3 minutes. There are many climbs, such as Blockhaus and Corno alle Scale, before that time trial, but that time trial will be decisive. For the sprinters there are still important opportunities: starting strong, perhaps taking the pink jersey already in the first stage, winning in Milan or Rome. It doesn’t happen often.”

Would she have liked to run it?

“For an Italian, the Giro is the race of the year. More than the Tour, for what it represents. It’s home, it’s the streets where you grew up, it’s the public. I would always have chosen it.”

Italian sport, which you also represented as a standard-bearer at Tokyo 2021, is reaping great successes: from tennis to athletics, from swimming to skiing. Cycling, on the other hand, is often criticized. What idea did you have?

“I am an optimist, I always look at the glass half full, as I have always done in my career, and not backwards because there is no point. The general level of Italian sport is very high, and this is a good thing. I am among the first to rejoice when Sinner wins a Slam or Brignone wins an Olympic gold. In cycling we have excellence: Ganna in the time trial and Milan in the sprints are the best in the world. The point to work on is the base, the youth categories. We have work to do among the juniors and the Under 23s, who have become very delicate in recent years. Today we immediately look for pure talent, but in this way we risk losing those who mature later.”

“Those always make the difference, it’s true. We are in a global sport dominated by champions, and it’s not easy. The truth is that we kept ourselves afloat very well with Pippo and Jonathan. But we have competitive riders in different areas. Let’s think about last year: Ciccone was sixth at the World Championship and Scaroni fourth at the European Championship. Now I see an increasingly brilliant Pellizzari. Finn is taking the right steps, he’s not forging ahead and his time will come. I repeat, we just have to have patience, working well at the base so that the champions of the future grow.”

Looking back, do you have any regrets?

“No. I finished with world gold, third in the Elimination, in a beautiful climate. I had fun, without the stress of the result. If I see images of my career I get emotional, I’m proud of what I did. But I have no thoughts of regret, I don’t have the thought of “I wish I would have”. That closure gave me serenity. Now I only look ahead, always trying to raise the bar”.

And is there room in Elia Viviani’s future to expand his family?

“Sporting life and personal life are two different levels. Elena Cecchini and I, also a cyclist, have been together for many years, we have already shared important milestones such as marriage. The rest will come, but without forcing. Cycling has been and will be central, but private life remains the most important thing.”