(PRIMASPORT) SHANGHAI On Wednesday, October 14, at the Shanghai Velodrome, world cycling takes its first step toward the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The pursuit quartets will take to the track at 10:30 a.m. (4:30 a.m. Italian time), in the women's and men's qualifying heats. The Team Sprint qualifiers will follow, and in the evening, the first titles will be awarded, along with the women's scratch race.
Italy arrives at these World Championships with a world title to defend, the women's pursuit, and with the return of Filippo Ganna and Jonathan Milan. Also present here in China are Francesco Lamon and Simone Consonni, members of the quartet that won gold in Tokyo and bronze in Paris two years ago. Alongside them are promising youngsters such as Alessio Magagnotti, making his world championship debut and immediately fielded by Edoardo Salvoldi in qualifying, replacing Simone Consonni. In the women's race, Elisa Balsamo returns, alongside Martina Alzini, Martina Fidanza, and Vittoria Guazzini, to try to confirm her title from Santiago, Chile. Federica Venturelli is absent due to an injury that also kept her out of competition at the Road World Championships. The women will only compete in the pursuit qualifying rounds, while the men will return to the track for the first round.
The men's Team Sprint also makes its debut at an overall World Championships, where coach Ivan Quaranta is fielding a very young Filippo Cusumano in the qualifiers alongside veterans, despite their youth, Matteo Bianchi and Mattia Predomo. The women's team features the trio Rachele Barbieri, Matilde Cenci, and Miriam Vece. The goal is to collect points to secure an Olympic qualification, which would truly validate the journey begun six years ago.
At 7:00 PM (1:00 PM in Italy), Martina Fidanza will compete in the scratch race. The Bergamo native from Ponte San Pietro will try to reclaim a title she's already won twice, in 2021 and 2022. (PRIMASPORT)