Elisa Longo Borghini skilled within the Paris rain one final time on Friday earlier than representing Italy within the Olympic Video games girls’s particular person time trial on Saturday.
The current Giro d’Italia winner already has two bronze medals gained within the highway races in Rio in 2016 and Tokyo 2021 however would love one other. She completed fifth within the Rio time trial and tenth on the hillier Tokyo course and can then lead the Italian workforce within the highway race subsequent weekend, alongside Elisa Balsamo, Silvia Persico and Elisa Cecchini.
“I might be pleased with one other medal. Regardless of the color of an Olympic medal, it is value gold,” Longo Borghini instructed the Italian web site Tuttobiciweb.
“There’s nothing like climbing on the rostrum on the Olympics to obtain a medal. You are feeling such as you’ve actually achieved one thing.”
Longo Borghini has stepped up a degree in 2024. She gained the Tour of Flanders throughout an outstanding spring marketing campaign after which led the Giro d’Italia Ladies from begin to end. She gained the opening Giro d’Italia time trial by a second forward of Australia’s Grace Brown, with Brodie Chapman third.
Brown is likely one of the favourites within the 35-rider girls’s time trial in Paris, and begins subsequent to final, at 15:19 CET on Saturday, simply 90 seconds forward of final rider and gold medal favorite Chloé Dygert of the USA.
Longo Borghini begins at 15:10 CET, 90 seconds after Lotte Kopecky of Belgium. Demi Vollering is off at 15:15. Ellen van Dijk of the Netherlands is off somewhat earlier, at 15:00 CET. The ladies cowl the identical 32.4km course as the lads, with the route heading out of central Paris to the Bois de Vincennes park for a sequence of loops earlier than a quick return to town centre and a end on the beautiful Pont Alexandre III.
“A medal within the time trial will probably be powerful to win however I’ve by no means been in such good type. I felt good after successful the Giro and have rested up and executed velocity work earlier than coming to Paris,” Longo Borghini defined.
“I’ve labored onerous on my time trailing and need to enhance much more. That is one purpose why I am right here.”
If Longo Borghini does not win a medal, she hopes her Lidl-Trek teammates can.
“I might love for Ellen to win,” she mentioned of Van Dijk.
“She gave start to a boy in October and it’s superb that she’s again racing after only a few months. She’s a job mannequin. I hope she’s recovered as a lot as doable from her harm. She misplaced some muscle due to it however I understand how onerous she’s labored to make a comeback.”
