Liquigas delighted with Coppi e Bartali success

The entire Liquigas ProTour squad is delighted after a successful day in Italy's 8th Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali. The day started on a positive note for the Italian outfit, with Francesco Chicchi winning the 92.5 kilometre opening stage in Riccione.

The team then went on to win the second stage, a 11.8 kilometre Team Time Trial in Misano. Dario Cataldo, in his first race of the season, will wear the best young rider's jersey on today's third stage, while team-mate Dario Cataldo will wear the points jersey in addition to Chicchi's yellow leader's jersey.

"Everything was going very well," said Liquigas' Mario Chiesa. "Athletes have been faultless with an excellent start and a race without hesitations. I feel very sorry for the sponsor but tomorrow our green-blue jersey will not be so visible. We'll start with the leader jerseys."

The Italian event continues today with a 175.6 km stage from Castel San Pietro Terme to Faenza. The six stage event finishes on Saturday in Sassuolo.