The day after tomorrow, last race of 2024

The 2024 race program of Team Polti Kometa, which began nine months ago in Valencia, will conclude this Sunday in a region that is one of the cradles of Italian cycling. The Veneto Classic will start in the province of Verona and primarily unfold in the province of Vicenza: a course somewhat similar to the Giro del Veneto, but slightly shifted to the northeast with some very interesting variations.

The first half is mostly flat, with just an uphill section in Monteviale to warm up the legs before a kaleidoscopic second half: the Rosina climb twice, followed by alternating between the short but steep cobbled sector of the Tisa six times and the ascent to Colceresa five times. In the last 10 km, riders will face the off-road Diesel Farm and the Contrà Soarda wall with double-digit gradients.

For the Veneto Classic, Polti Kometa will make only one change to the lineup from the Giro del Veneto: Andrea Garosio will replace Jhonatan Restrepo. The rest of the squad remains the same with Fernando Tercero, Mirco Maestri, Andrea Pietrobon, Davide De Cassan, Mattia Bais (fresh from his top-10 finish on the Monte Berico) and Germán Gómez, whom we saw in the breakaway two days ago.

Garosio: “I expect a major selection on the Tisa and Colceresa circuit, especially because the narrow roads favor attacks, but the real divide between those who can fight for the win and those who can’t is the Diesel Farm. I’m excited to be part of this final event, which has been on the calendar since 2021, and I’ve always participated in it with various teams. I particularly like it and, after recovering well from Il Lombardia, I’m highly motivated to perform well.”

Sports Director Biagio Conte: “In previous editions of this young and demanding classic, we came close to the top-10 a couple of times. The day after tomorrow we’ll try to be in the mix with Bais, who has shown great form alongside all his teammates. We want to end the season on a high!”