Our rider finished again on the podium at the Nationals.
Mattia Cattaneo took his fourth medal in five years at the National Championships, after putting in another great ride on the flat roads of the Friuli-Venezia-Giulia region, where the 28km event was held this week.
Racing for the first time since concluding the Giro d’Italia more than three weeks ago, the 34-year-old was the first of the pre-race favourites to roll down the ramp and got off to a strong start, setting the benchmark at the checkpoint, 18:54. Cattaneo maintained this solid tempo until the finish in San Vito al Tagliamento, where he stopped the clock in 31:32 thanks to an average speed of 53.25/km/h – enough to conclude third and take his first podium of the season.
“The parcours wasn’t very long, but you really had to be on top of your game and give everything out there, while making sure you had something left for the second part so that you could keep the pace high until the end. It was my first outing since the first weekend of the month and I felt good from the moment I started, which gave me confidence for the race. To be again on the podium here and take my fourth medal makes me happy, and at the same time, motivated for Sunday’s road race”, said Mattia, who was joined in the top ten by Soudal Quick-Step teammate Gianmarco Garofoli, who concluded the race in eighth place.
Photo credit: ©Dario Belingheri / Getty Images
