Viviani sprints to victory at Donoratico

Elia Viviani (Liquigas-Cannondale) claimed his second successive GP Costa degli Etruschi victory by outsprinting Sacha Modolo (Colnago-CSF Bardiani) in a bunch finish in a frozen Donoratico, with Filippo Baggio (Utensilnord-Named) the best of the rest in third.

Viviani and Modolo enjoyed a number of sprint tussles on the domestic calendar last year, and their duel was always likely to decide the outcome of the traditional curtain opener to the Italian season, particularly given that Alessandro Petacchi (Lampre-ISD) had insisted beforehand that he would not take any risks in the treacherous conditions.

Unsure of whether or not the wily Petacchi was bluffing, however, Viviani planted himself on his wheel in the finale. Although Petacchi was at the business end of affairs, he ultimately opted not to contest the sprint, and his reticence meant that Viviani was forced to change horses mid-course.

“I thought that Petacchi would be the man to beat and so I held his wheel from 3km to go until the last 300 metres,” Viviani said afterwards. “Seeing that he wasn’t going for it, I jumped onto Modolo’s wheel, because he was being led out. With 70 metres to go, I came around him.”

The win was Viviani’s second of the season, after he captured a stage victory at the Tour de San Luis in Argentina last week. For his rival Modolo, it was the first outing of the season, and his directeur sportif Roberto Reverberi was determined to focus on the positives.

“It was a beautiful sprint, uncertain right to the end, and Modolo jumped well with 200 metres to go,” Reverberi pointed out. “It’s a second place that augurs well.”

Extreme conditions see reduction in distance

Plummeting temperatures and heavy snowfall in Tuscany in the days leading up to the race had threatened the cancellation of the GP Costa degli Etruschi, with Saturday morning’s Gazzetta dello Sport going so far as to question whether it was reasonable to expect riders to risk life and limb in such conditions. Ultimately the race proceeded, albeit with one concession to the weather – the peloton would cover just two laps of the opening circuit rather than three, reducing the total distance to 169km.

Winter jackets, tights and snoods were the order of the day as the bunch pedalled gingerly away from a slightly delayed start in San Vincenzo. With temperatures hovering just above freezing, however, a number of riders were in no mood to hang around, and the main break of the day had forged clear within 15km.

Alessandro De Marchi (Androni), Davide Ricci Bitti (Farnese-Selle Italia) and Federico Rocchetti (Utensilnord-Named) were the three men who forced their way clear, and they quickly built up a maximum advantage of 11 minutes as they proceeded steadily through the snow-draped Tuscan countryside.

Inside the final 80km, their lead slowly but surely began to dwindle, as Liquigas-Cannondale, Colnago-CSF Bardiani and Lampre-ISD set to work on the front of the peloton, and by the time they reached the final lap of the finishing circuit with 10km, they had just 20 seconds in hand on the bunch.

At that point, the plucky De Marchi took a flyer and tried to hold off the peloton alone, but his effort fizzled out within 3 kilometres, and the stage was set for a grandstand finish in Donoratico. While Lampre-ISD did much of the spadework in clearing a path for the sprint, it was ultimately the youngsters Viviani and Modolo who fought it out, with Viviani emerging victorious.

A big 2012 stretches out before Viviani. As well as competing with a number of fast young Italian sprinters on the road, he is also building towards the London 2012 Olympics, where he hopes to compete in the omnium on the track.

“Now I’m taking part in the next races on the Italian calendar, starting with the Giro della Provincia di Reggio Calabria, but the next important aim is the last round of the track World Cup in London,” Viviani said. “It will be important to get a good result there for the Olympics.”

Full Results

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#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Elia Viviani (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale4:25:00
2Sacha Modolo (Ita) Colnago - CSF InoxRow 1 - Cell 2
3Filippo Baggio (Ita) Utensilnord NamedRow 2 - Cell 2
4Giorgio Brambilla (Ita) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 3 - Cell 2
5Ariel Maximiliano Richeze (Arg) Team NippoRow 4 - Cell 2
6Marco Frapporti (Ita) Team IdeaRow 5 - Cell 2
7Manuel Belletti (Ita) AG2R La MondialeRow 6 - Cell 2
8Krisztian Lovassy (Hun)Row 7 - Cell 2
9Danilo Napolitano (Ita) Acqua & SaponeRow 8 - Cell 2
10Enrico Rossi (Ita) Meridiana Kamen TeamRow 9 - Cell 2
11Luca Barla (Ita) Team IdeaRow 10 - Cell 2
12Baptiste Plackaert (Bel) LandbouwkredietRow 11 - Cell 2
13Kevin Peeters (Bel) LandbouwkredietRow 12 - Cell 2
14Filippo Fortin (Ita) Team Type 1 - SanofiRow 13 - Cell 2
15Eugenio Alafaci (Ita) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 14 - Cell 2
16Giuseppe De Maria (Ita) Team IdeaRow 15 - Cell 2
17Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Lampre - ISDRow 16 - Cell 2
18Gianluca Maggiore (Ita) Utensilnord NamedRow 17 - Cell 2
19Alexander Serebryakov (Rus) Team Type 1 - SanofiRow 18 - Cell 2
20Marco Zanotti (Ita) Utensilnord NamedRow 19 - Cell 2
21Stefano Agostini (Ita) Liquigas-CannondaleRow 20 - Cell 2
22Martijn Verschoor (Ned) Team Type 1 - SanofiRow 21 - Cell 2
23Kristof Goddaert (Bel) AG2R La MondialeRow 22 - Cell 2
24Omar Bertazzo (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 23 - Cell 2
25Oscar Gatto (Ita) Farnese Vini - Selle ItaliaRow 24 - Cell 2
26Mauro Abel Richeze (Arg) Team NippoRow 25 - Cell 2
27Jeffry Johan Romero Corredor (Col) Colombia - ColdeportesRow 26 - Cell 2
28Kevin Claeys (Bel) LandbouwkredietRow 27 - Cell 2
29Marcel Aregger (Swi) Atlas Personal - JakrooRow 28 - Cell 2
30Ruslan Karimov (Uzb) Team IdeaRow 29 - Cell 2
31Tiziano Dall'antonia (Ita) Liquigas-CannondaleRow 30 - Cell 2
32Reinier Honig (Ned) LandbouwkredietRow 31 - Cell 2
33Fabio Silvestre (Por) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 32 - Cell 2
34Jonathan Breyne (Bel) LandbouwkredietRow 33 - Cell 2
35Cristian Cominelli (Ita) Team IdeaRow 34 - Cell 2
36Olivier Hofstetter (Swi) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 35 - Cell 2
37Nicolas Winter (Swi) Atlas Personal - JakrooRow 36 - Cell 2
38Alexandr Pliuschin (Mda) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 37 - Cell 2
39Joeri Bueken (Bel) LandbouwkredietRow 38 - Cell 2
40Elia Favilli (Ita) Farnese Vini - Selle ItaliaRow 39 - Cell 2
41Sonny Colbrelli (Ita) Colnago - CSF InoxRow 40 - Cell 2
42Jesus Ezquerra (Spa) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 41 - Cell 2
43Michaël Baer (Swi) Atlas Personal - JakrooRow 42 - Cell 2
44Sébastien Delfosse (Bel) LandbouwkredietRow 43 - Cell 2
45Bruno Radotic (Cro) Meridiana Kamen TeamRow 44 - Cell 2
46Matti Helminen (Fin) LandbouwkredietRow 45 - Cell 2
47Roberto De Patre (Ita) Farnese Vini - Selle ItaliaRow 46 - Cell 2
48Juan Pablo Forero Carreno (Col) Colombia - ColdeportesRow 47 - Cell 2
49Danilo Hondo (Ger) Lampre - ISDRow 48 - Cell 2
50Wilson Alexander Marentes Torres (Col) Colombia - ColdeportesRow 49 - Cell 2
51Pit Schlechter (Lux) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 50 - Cell 2
52Aldo Ino Ilesic (Slo) Team Type 1 - SanofiRow 51 - Cell 2
53Dalivier Ospina Navarro (Col) Colombia - ColdeportesRow 52 - Cell 2
54Marco Coledan (Ita) Colnago - CSF InoxRow 53 - Cell 2
55Simone Boifava (Ita) Team IdeaRow 54 - Cell 2
56Fabio Andres Duarte Arevalo (Col) Colombia - ColdeportesRow 55 - Cell 2
57Marton Solymosi (Hun)Row 56 - Cell 2
58Hideto Nakane (Jpn) Team NippoRow 57 - Cell 2
59Maciej Paterski (Pol) Liquigas-CannondaleRow 58 - Cell 2
60Oleg Berdos (Mda) Utensilnord NamedRow 59 - Cell 2
61Martin Elmiger (Swi) AG2R La MondialeRow 60 - Cell 2
62Mikael Cherel (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 61 - Cell 2
63Gilles Devillers (Bel) LandbouwkredietRow 62 - Cell 2
64Alberto Di Lorenzo (Ita) Meridiana Kamen TeamRow 63 - Cell 2
65Florian Salzinger (Ger) Atlas Personal - JakrooRow 64 - Cell 2
66Davide Mucelli (Ita) Utensilnord NamedRow 65 - Cell 2
67Julian Kern (Ger) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 66 - Cell 2
68Paolo Locatelli (Ita) Colnago - CSF InoxRow 67 - Cell 2
69Christian Delle Stelle (Ita) Colnago - CSF InoxRow 68 - Cell 2
70Vegard Stake Laengen (Nor) Team Type 1 - SanofiRow 69 - Cell 2
71Patrick Schelling (Swi) Atlas Personal - JakrooRow 70 - Cell 2
72Ryohei Komori (Jpn) Team NippoRow 71 - Cell 2
73Kristijan Koren (Slo) Liquigas-CannondaleRow 72 - Cell 2
74Maurizio Biondo (Ita) Meridiana Kamen TeamRow 73 - Cell 2
75Francesco Failli (Ita) Farnese Vini - Selle ItaliaRow 74 - Cell 2
76Lloyd Mondory (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 75 - Cell 2
77Federico Canuti (Ita) Liquigas-CannondaleRow 76 - Cell 2
78Rafael Andriato (Bra) Farnese Vini - Selle ItaliaRow 77 - Cell 2
79Nicolas Roche (Irl) AG2R La MondialeRow 78 - Cell 2
80Victor Hugo Pena Grisales (Col) Colombia - ColdeportesRow 79 - Cell 2
81Antonio Parrinello (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 80 - Cell 2
82Blaz Bonca (Slo) Meridiana Kamen TeamRow 81 - Cell 2
83Joey Rosskopf (USA) Team Type 1 - SanofiRow 82 - Cell 2
84Bendeguz Bernard (Hun)Row 83 - Cell 2
85Davide Vigano (Ita) Lampre - ISDRow 84 - Cell 2
86Boris Shpilevsky (Rus) AG2R La MondialeRow 85 - Cell 2
87Frederico Rocchetti (Ita) Utensilnord NamedRow 86 - Cell 2
88Rubens Bertogliati (Swi) Team Type 1 - SanofiRow 87 - Cell 2
89Robinson Eduardo Chalapud Gomez (Col) Colombia - ColdeportesRow 88 - Cell 2
90Javier Gonzalez Barrera (Col) Colombia - ColdeportesRow 89 - Cell 2
91Fabio Felline (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 90 - Cell 2
92Bob Jungels (Lux) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 91 - Cell 2
93Joel Zangerle (Lux) Leopard - Trek Continental TeamRow 92 - Cell 2
94Adrian Kurek (Pol) Utensilnord NamedRow 93 - Cell 2
95Vladimir Miholjevic (Cro) Acqua & SaponeRow 94 - Cell 2
96Peter Simon (Hun)Row 95 - Cell 2
97Romain Bardet (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 96 - Cell 2
98Francesco Ginanni (Ita) Acqua & SaponeRow 97 - Cell 2
99Andrea Palini (Ita) Team IdeaRow 98 - Cell 2
100Luis Felipe Laverde Jimenez (Col) Colombia - ColdeportesRow 99 - Cell 2
101Francesco Reda (Ita) Acqua & SaponeRow 100 - Cell 2
102Antonio Santoro (Ita) Androni GiocattoliRow 101 - Cell 2
103Luca Dodi (Ita) Team IdeaRow 102 - Cell 2
104Luca Mazzanti (Ita) Farnese Vini - Selle ItaliaRow 103 - Cell 2
105Davide Ricci Bitti (Ita) Farnese Vini - Selle ItaliaRow 104 - Cell 2
106Fabio Calabria (Aus) Team Type 1 - SanofiRow 105 - Cell 2
107Juraj Sagan (Svk) Liquigas-CannondaleRow 106 - Cell 2
108Daniele Ratto (Ita) Liquigas-CannondaleRow 107 - Cell 2
109Paolo Ciavatta (Ita) Acqua & SaponeRow 108 - Cell 2
110Francesco Di Paolo (Ita) Acqua & SaponeRow 109 - Cell 2
111Alessandro Donati (Ita) Acqua & SaponeRow 110 - Cell 2
112Biel Kadri (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 111 - Cell 2
113Alexander Zdanov (Rus) Team NippoRow 112 - Cell 2
114David John Mclean (GBr) Meridiana Kamen TeamRow 113 - Cell 2
115Jasmin Becirovic (Cro) Meridiana Kamen TeamRow 114 - Cell 2
116Matteo Bono (Ita) Lampre - ISDRow 115 - Cell 2
117Daniele Righi (Ita) Lampre - ISDRow 116 - Cell 2
118Massimo Graziato (Ita) Lampre - ISDRow 117 - Cell 2
119Matteo Montaguti (Ita) AG2R La MondialeRow 118 - Cell 2
120Andrea Di Corrado (Ita) Colnago - CSF InoxRow 119 - Cell 2
121Aristide Ratti (Ita) Team IdeaRow 120 - Cell 2
122Mariano Giallorenzo (Ita) Meridiana Kamen TeamRow 121 - Cell 2

 

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