Ivan Basso won the Giro del Trentino a year ago but hopes to be doing even better this year. In the 2009 edition, Basso took home the overall title without winning a stage. The last time Basso crossed a finish line in first dates back to stage 20 of the 2006 Giro d'Italia - which also netted him the overall in the Corsa Rosa.
Basso started today's Trentino race with a mixed bag of memories. "In 2009 I took an unexpected but very important victory here in Trentino," he said in a press conference ahead of the week-long stage race. "Then I came to the Giro d'Italia but I didn't manage to impress. Now I really would like to repeat last year's [Trentino] win."
He has put a foundation down, finishing in 13th place in the opening 12.5km time trial. He is 34 seconds behind stage winner Alexander Vinokourov now.
Basso already has a clue about how to change back to a winner, when he reflected on the past season. "I was too hesitant in the finals last year, " he told Gazzetta dello Sport. "I need to stop thinking about tactical games," the Italian said. "Also, I don't have a good final kick, so I need to do well in the mountain stages, but there aren't that many."
Part of the reason Basso has not won much in the past few years is of course, his doping suspension from 2007 to 2008. But he came back in the October of 2008, at the Japan Cup, and had thus fully raced last year's season. "In 2009 I was close a few times, now I am ready for it [a win]."
He is quite ambitious, eyeing the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France as races to go for victory. But the Liquigas team has a luxury problem, with Franco Pellizotti, Vincenzo Nibali and Roman Kreuziger all capable of playing first fiddle. Basso does not see that as a problem. "The more riders for the overall the better," he said. "Inter Milan and the FC Barcelona [soccer clubs from Italy and Spain -ed.] are also not dependent on just one player. A big team like ours needs to have multiple leaders."