COMUNICATI
STAMPA DALLA CORSA
Bradley
Wiggins gave Team Sky the perfect start to the Giro d'Italia
by winning the opening time trial in Amsterdam.
Also see
Bradley
Wiggins
The
three-time Olympic champion had been one of the
favouritesfor the 8.4km event and he delivered in stunning
style to give Team Sky a Grand Tour stage
victory at their very first attempt.
Resplendent
in the British time-trial champion's white jersey with
red and blue bands, Wiggins was a second ahead
at the intermediate time check and stopped the clock in
10 minutes and 18 seconds, two seconds clear of his rivals.
BMC
Racing pair Brent Bookwalter and world road race
champion Cadel Evans filled second and third but
the day belonged to Wiggins, with his victory meaning
he becomes only the second Briton to wear the race leader's
jersey, the maglia rosa.
On
a landmark day for Team Sky there was also a superb
ride from sprinter Greg Henderson who finished
fifth, five seconds behind, while Dario Cioni underlined
his recent good form by coming home in 15th place.
Steve
Cummings was 69th, Michael Barry 70th, Mathew
Hayman 94th, Chris Sutton 101st, Morris
Possoni 111th and Chris Froome, working
his way back to full fitness after a recent chest infection,
was 138th.
Tunnel
vision
Wiggins
was a study in concentration at the start and he said
afterwards: "I was in my
own world - that's how I always do these things.
"I
was oblivious to anyone else and just did my own race.
It was hard but I just went for it, especially in the
corners. If you want to win it, you've got to commit 100
per cent, like a sprinter when they go for a sprint.
"For
me it's beautiful to be wearing the pink jersey. It's
iconic and one of the most special jerseys. To wear it
means a lot to me and is a big honour."
Team
principal Dave Brailsford was quick to hail Wiggins
and the team as a whole, telling us: "Bradley
absolutely committed 100% and technically he rode it very,
very well. I think it was in the corners where he really
made the difference and came out a deserved winner.
"It's
an absolutely brilliant day for us and is testimony to
the work that the backroom staff do. It's all the setting
up, the attention to detail, the planning - all of that
which is hard to do but which all pays off if you take
the time to do it properly."
Sports
director Sean Yates was equally delighted by the
team's performance, and thought Wiggins lived up to his
reputation superbly.
He
said: "You couldn't ask
for a better start. This is the first stage of Team Sky's
first-ever Grand Tour and everything ran super-smoothly.
"Everybody
knows Bradley is one of the world's best time triallers,
so there was a lot of pressure on his shoulders at the
start of the day, but he dealt with it all superbly and
really came up with the goods."
Giro
d'Italia, Stage 1: Impressive Start
Amsterdam,
The Netherlands, 2010-05-08 - Brent
Bookwalter and world road champion Cadel Evans
finished second and third, respectively, in Saturday's
Stage 1 individual time trial at the Giro d'Italia.
It was an impressive result for the BMC Racing Team in
its Grand Tour debut.
Bookwalter
Pleasantly Surprised
Racing
through the streets of Amsterdam on his BMC time machine
TT01, Bookwalter held the fastest time for nearly an hour
until Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky) recorded a 10:18 over
the 8.4-kilometer course – two seconds faster than
him and Evans. "It was a
fairly technical, short violent effort, which I think
suits me well," Bookwalter said.
"At least in the United
States, I've always been pretty good in the five to 15
km distance. I'm not super tested at that distance over
here. But I was motivated to do a good time for the team
GC and also to do a good time so Cadel could get good
time checks. It's really a pleasant surprise."
Evans
Rode Conservatively
Evans,
who is wearing bib No. 1, said he wasn't going all-out
on the wet, technical course.
"I
rode quite conservatively in the corners because I didn't
expect to be fighting for the win," the
Australian said.
"Maybe
if I had taken some risks, I might have cut a half a second
off here or there. I'm really happy for Brent. It's a
really good start for him and a great introduction into
his first Grand Tour."
Hondo
il migliore blue-fucsia nel prologo: 38° tempo
Cielo
grigio, pioggia intermittente e asfalto intramezzato da
pavè reso scivoloso dall'acqua: queste le caratteristiche
della prima tappa del Giro d'Italia, 8,4 km in
Amsterdam.
Prestazioni nella norma per i corridori della Lampre-Farnese
Vini, con Hondo miglior classificato: 38°
tempo, 10'41".
La prima maglia rosa è di Wiggins, vincitore
di tappa con il tempo di 10'18" alla media di 48,932
km/h.
51^posizione
a 27" da Wiggins per Alessandro Petacchi,
mentre bisogna scorrere la classifica fino al 144°
posto per trovare Damiano Cunego (il suo tempo
è di 52" più alto di quello del vincitore);
Simoni ha chiuso con la 156^ prestazione (56"
da Wiggins), Righi con la 92^ a 40", Bono
con la 95^ a 42", Loosli con la 112^ a 46",
Spezialetti con la 165^ e Marzano con la
167^ (entrambi a 58").
"So
di aver dato il massimo in una cronometro abbastanza adatta
alla mie caratteristiche - ha spiegato Hondo
- Mi spiace solamente aver avuto
un contrattempo dopo circa 2 km di gara, quando in una
curva la mia ruota anteriore è scivolata su un
piccolo tombino metallico posto al centro della strada:
ho rischiato di cadere, mi sono salvato per poco, ma ho
perso preziosi secondi".
Alessandro
Petacchi ha invece così commentato la sua prestazione:
"Una cronometro iniziale resa impegnativa dal freddo
e dalla pioggia, che ha bagnato un percorso tortuoso nella
parte iniziale e con spazi per fare velocità nel
settore centrale. Assieme ai meccanici della squadra ho
scelto un assetto della bici che mi permettesse di non
correre troppi rischi sul bagnato e al 
contempo
di riuscire a essere rapido: il risultato
è stato soddisfacente. Ora mi concentro su tappe
che possono essere alla mia portata".
"Finalmente
il Giro è partito, peccato che il tempo
non abbia sorriso alla bella cornice rappresentata da
Amsterdam - ha commentato Simoni al
traguardo - Non ho 
voluto
correre inutili rischi, cadere e rovinare tutto non sarebbe
stato l'ideale".
Conclusione
per Cunego: "La prova
è stata in linea con le mie aspettative. Mi sono
impegnato per cercare di realizzare una buona cronometro,
senza però prendere troppi rischi: la parte iniziale,
tortuosa e con il fondo stradale bagnato, andava affrontata
con grande attenzione".
Grey
sky, rain and wet roads: these were the characteristics
of the 1st stage of Giro d'Italia, 8,4 km in Amsterdam.
Normal
performances for Lampre-Farnese Vini's cyclists
with
Hondo best blue-fucsia: 38th, clock stopped at
10'41".
The first pink jersey was for Wiggins, winner that
recorded 10'18" at an average speed of 48,932 km/h.
51st
position for Alessandro Petacchi at 27" to
Wiggins, while Cunego is 144th (52"
higher than the winner); Simoni completed his performance
in 156th place, 56" to the first position; Righi
was 92th at 40", Bono 95th at 42", Loosli 112th
at 46", Spezialetti 165th and Marzano 167th, both
at 58".
"I
know I gave my best in a time trial quite good for my
characteristics - Hondo explained -
My sorrow is that after 2 km,
in a bend, my front wheel passed on a metal manhole and
slipped: I almost fell, but even if I didn't crash I lost
seconds".
Alessandro
Petacchi commented his performance using these
words: "A time trial that
became tougher because of the rain and the cold. With
team mechanichs I chose an arrangement that could be good
for covering in a safe way the wet roads and for pedalling
at a good speed: the result was satisfying. Now I'm going
to focus my attention on stages that could be good for
me".
"Finally
the Giro started, it's a pity that the weather was not
so good - Simoni commented after the
arrival - I didn't want to risk:
a crash would not have been a brilliant idea".
Final commented by Cunego: "My performance was how
I had thought it could be. I was willing to realize a
good time trial, even if I didn't want to risk too much:
the starting part was tortuous and wet, so I need to pedal
with care".
Oggi
ad Amsterdam si è svolta la prima tappa del Giro
d'Italia 2010 con una cronometro individuale di 8,4 km.
Al
debutto nella corsa rosa, mai svolta prima di oggi per
il 
portacolori
kazako, Vinokourov ha ottenuto il quarto posto,
a cinque secondi dal vincitore di tappa, Bradley
Wiggins.
Al
termine della prova il ciclista kazako, ha detto
dopo questa prima giornata, "Dopo
i miei sforzi nella Liegi-Bastogne-Liegi, sentivo
che mi mancava un po 'di flessibilità. non ho preso
troppi rischi negli angoli. 
Arrivando
nella top 5, una zona che si adatta a me. Mi sembra naturale
che questa cronometro sia stata vinta da Wiggins che è
uno specialista in questo tipo di prove."
Per
quel che riguarda la condizione Vinokourov ha aggiunto:
"Comunque è bello,
sento che la forza c'è e tutti i i compagni di
squadra hanno fatto dei buoni risultati".
Le
prospettive a breve offrono grandi opportunità
all'Astana con la cronometro a squadre che si svolgerà
nella 4a tappa.
tre
tappe olandesi.
di Roberto Bettini 
