Tomorrow one of the most important races of the calendar, the U23 Giro d’Italia, will kick off in Forli with a 4,4 km long prologue. The race presents a really challenging parcour that will compress 11 stages in just 10 days. The peloton will face the first uphill finish already in the third day of racing, and a total of 3 mountain top finishes will follow after that. The Corsa Rosa will be wrapped up with a double stage in the last day, starting with a 73 km long road stage and followed by a 22 km time trial, with the last kilometer holding a 10% average gradient.

After the success of the Academy in Ronde de l’Isard, our first U23 stage race of the season, where Stevie Williams took the overall win alongside two stage wins and the KOM jersey, our six youngsters will aim high in the coming week. 

Lineup Giro d’Italia U23: Daan Hoole, Jan Maas, Ide Schelling, Thymen Arensman, Edoardo Affini & Stevie Williams. 

Jan Maas, 13th in Ronde de l’Isard 2018, is ready to rumble: 
“Personally, I am feeling really good and confident ahead of the race. I had a good race in Ronde de l’Isard followed by a quality block of training in Greece afterward. The expectations for the team will be aiming for stage wins and depending on the standings after the first days also go for a high GC placement. We have a super strong team, so we’re ready to rock. Concerning my own expectations, I feel good, in shape, I have trained well and I am really looking forward this beautiful race. I go into the Giro with the goal of giving the 100% every day and see how far I will come then! The key to surviving 10 days of racing at the highest U23 level will be getting into a good rhythm from the beginning. That means, eat well, rest well, focus on the coming stage and most importantly, have fun!”