EOLO-KOMETA victory on the mythical Monte Zoncolan
Giro d’Italia 2021
Stage 14: Cittadella – Monte Zoncolan (205 km)
Lorenzo Fortunato put his name to it, but the signature was a group one. A signature of a whole project, with twenty cyclists and many people working to assist them, which was born a few months ago in the ProTeam category. Lorenzo Fortunato won this Saturday on the summit of the Monte Zoncolan, he released the palmares of the EOLO-KOMETA Cycling Team and certified the fulfilment of a dream for a structure that faces the Corsa Rosa after the invitation of his organization. That invitation was a responsibility. And the ambitious objective was to win a stage. A difficult undertaking, very complicated, because winning is always difficult. But the goal was clear and they had worked hard to achieve it. Lorenzo Fortunato realised that desire and unleashed the euphoria.
Lorenzo Fortunato won on the summit of Monte Zoncolan, where the breakaway triumphed once again. The rider from Bologna and Vincenzo Albanese were part of a breakaway of eleven riders that was formed in the first kilometres. The eleven managed to build up a lead of more than eight minutes, which put the race into the limbo of uncertainty. Could the breakaway make it? Albanese was incommensurable in assisting Fortunato. The eleven of them passed the Forcella Monte Rest, the one with the twisty descent.
On the approach to the Zoncolan, the breakaway was down to nine riders, with Albanese already letting himself go once the job was done. Their lead was just over six minutes. And on the Zoncolan, the delirium. There, the ‘Bahraini’ Jan Tratnik moved with ten kilometres to go and the hardest part. There Fortunato reacted, who saw it clear and went solo to leave him behind in the last three kilometres. Fortunato managed the hardest ramps slightly better to achieve the most important victory, not only of his career, but of an entire sporting project.
Dreams do come true.
“I still can’t believe what happened. I realized that I had won 150 meters from the end when I heard Stefano Zanatta on the radio saying “Now do a sprint” and meanwhile Ivan was screaming. It is a dream come true, a great thing: I thank my sport directors, I thank Ivan Basso and Alberto Contador, I thank Luca Spada and all the staff of Eolo-Kometa because without them I would have never succeeded in this enterprise. This team will grow and I’ll grow with it, I’m sure of it. Thanks to everyone: this morning Ivan Basso told me “Go in the breakaway and win the stage”. And it happened, it really happened”, tells Lorenzo Fortunato.
Ivan Basso, mánager of EOLO-KOMETA: “Lorenzo today was truly extraordinary: we had promised to be protagonists this year, and today, thanks to him, we hit the target. For those who love this sport, the Zoncolan is a real monument: today Lorenzo has written his name among the great champions who have conquered it, and I don’t think there is a greater joy than seeing our efforts rewarded with a performance of this level. The teamwork really made the difference: thanks to the support of Vincenzo Albanese in the breakaway and all the other guys in the group, we were able to keep our promise to win a stage. And it’s not over yet: the final catwalk is still a week away, and our thirst for victory is certainly not exhausted”.
… and tomorrow the race have another day.
[ PhotoGomezSport]
