Two-time World Champion Julian Alaphilippe will be in action for the squad Saturday afternoon.
Giro dell’Emilia is our team’s final outing of what has been an excellent month of September, with nine victories, including a GC triumph, delivered by five different riders. One of the oldest races in Italy, won in the past one hundred years by some of cycling’s biggest names, the 204.1km event starting from Carpi and finishing in Bologna promises to live again to its reputation as one of the most spectacular races of this final part of the season.
The main attraction, and difficulty, is the iconic San Luca climb, averaging a gruelling 10% over just 2.1 kilometers, which the peloton will tackle several times on Saturday. Positioning, as well as timing, will be key on the hill lying outside Bologna – home of the world’s oldest university – and Soudal Quick-Step will be hoping to be among the protagonists. Julian Alaphilippe, Andrea Bagioli, who was fifth on San Luca in 2020, James Knox, Fausto Masnada, Mauro Schmid, Ilan Van Wilder and Mauri Vansevenant will be the seven wolves at the start of the 106th edition.
“We are heading to Italy for a solid block of racing, the first appointment of the next ten days being the Giro dell’Emilia. Many of the riders in our squad competed in Luxembourg last week, and are ready and motivated for Saturday. The course is very tough, but looking over our team we are confident we can do well again”, explained Soudal Quick-Step sports director Davide Bramati.
Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele / Getty Images
