National Championships Week: the pride of wearing your country’s flag in the maillot

The National Championships are here! The competitions that allow cyclists to compete in Team Polti Kometa clothing, wishing to add the colours of their country’s flag to their jersey for a year. To be the best national rider, either on the road or against the clock. In Italy, Spain and Hungary, the team will participate in the quest for the championship title.

This Wednesday in Hungary, the quest for victory in the National Championships begins. In this case, Erik Fetter will face an individual effort of 38 kilometres completely flat in the afternoon. A title he already won in 2021 and 2022, and is now looking to retain.

On Thursday, the competition moves to Italy with the time trial on a flat double circuit outside Grosseto. The specialists will complete a total distance of 35.1 kilometres with long straights on which to develop maximum power in the quest for victory. Mirco Maestri, Mattia Bais and Andrea Pietrobon will start the time trial.

The road races of these National Championships will be held on Sunday. In Hungary, Erik Fetter will race 170 kilometres of course with a flat first part and a small final circuit in which a climb of 1 kilometre will mark the course of the race. The cyclist assures that this race will be “a great challenge for which I feel prepared and in good condition. It’s a question of riding intelligently, as I don’t have any team-mates to help me, so I’ll try to be smart to get a good result”.

The Italian championships online race will serve as a tribute to the Italian Grand Départ of the Tour de France in Florence: 228 kilometres dedicated to the memory of the historic national cycling coach, Alfredo Martini. After the start in the spectacular Piazzale Michelangelo, the first part of the race will enter the Valdisieve and the Mugello with the first climbs and descents that will begin to test the riders’ legs. The Calenzano Crosses will mark the turning point of the race: the climb to Monte Morello (4 km at 6%) will then be climbed five times, with the last one at 8.6 km from the finish, located in Sesto Fiorentino near the Martini house.

The line-up for this event is headed by Mirco Maestri, accompanied by Giovanni Lonardi, Matteo Fabbro, Mattia Bais, Davide Bais, Andrea Pietrobon, Andrea Garosio and Davide De Cassan.

Captain Maestri values these Italian championships: “We arrive at the national championship with a good, complete team, ready to continue the good performances we have had recently. I’ll give my all in the time trial, for which I’ve prepared well, and in the race in line we’ll try to take advantage of the situations that may arise, because it’s never clear who should take responsibility for the race and there may be surprises. We will race on the attack, as always”.

In Spain, the Madrid town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial will once again host the road race of the national championships with a very tough route through the mountains that will also be marked by the heat. A total of 205 kilometres, divided into a 36-kilometre loop with the ascent to Fresnedillas de la Oliva on five occasions, and three passes over the finish line with the ascent to the Carretera de la Presa, in the direction of the Alto de Abantos. More than 3500 metres of elevation gain and a day for real climbers.

The experienced Diego Sevilla, together with Javier Serrano, Alex Martin and Fran Muñoz will compete in the event. In addition, the elite cyclist Pablo García, who will share the race with his professional team mates, but fighting for the title in his category in a very tough race.

Racing at home, Sevilla expects these Spanish Championships to be “a very selective race. In addition, this year the hardness will be concentrated in the final part, in those three laps without rest around San Lorenzo de El Escorial. The cobblestones and those ramps at the start of Abantos are going to be very stifling, with the hard pace also on the descent. It’s going to be a race for climbers but also for powerful cyclists, we’ll try to do well because I’m racing at home and that’s always special”.