The ‘colline del Prosecco’ stages a new fight with many contenders for the prestigious Trofeo Piva
73º Trofeo Piva
Col San Martino – Col San Martino (179,2 km)
The Trofeo Piva of Col San Martino is here. The orography of the Prosecco hills hosts the demanding route of the second of the four big Italian races of the U23 spring calendar. An international event in which many of the big names in the category will be taking part. The AC Col San Martino celebrates its sixtieth anniversary as a cycling club.
Andrea Montoli, Davide Piganzoli, Manuel Oioli, Javi Serrano and Fernando Tercero make up the team with which the U23 structure of the Contador Foundation returns to the province of Treviso. From that quintet that debuted in 2021, both Montoli and Piganzoli return. Álex Martín and David Martín, present in that team, are today professional riders in the EOLO-KOMETA Cycling Team.
The Piva is a long race. And especially demanding in terms of orography. The management of wear and tear is fundamental. The climb to Combai is faced nine times. And it is a climb of 5 kilometres with a gradient of around 4%, but with a kilometre in the middle of the climb that reaches 10%. The last three climbs to Combai are also combined with the San Virgilio slope, with its summit very close to the finish line: 700 metres with a ramp of 20%.
“A beautiful race, but really hard”, says Andrea Montoli during a break from his communication studies at the Università degli studi dell’Insubria. “Last year’s experience will be very useful for this year’s edition. We are travelling with a very strong team, which moves well on this terrain and manages the climbs well. Personally I’m in a good moment, in San Vendemiano I felt very good and I was able to ride the whole day at the front”.
Dario Andriotto, director of the U23 team: “The Piva is a race of elimination where it is essential to be attentive to all the movements at the same time that you have to save your legs to manage the last laps. San Virgilio also makes the last two laps very hard. The particularity of this strappo is its proximity to the finish, just three kilometres. It is not an easy descent, it has some complex points. You have to have good legs to be in the fight and the support of the team is always essential. After the last races, with the experience of 2021, we are looking forward to it”.
Trofeo Piva: Col San Martino – Col San Martino (179,2 km).
