The showcase of jerseys iridescent grows in Gobik. A little less than a month ago, the same morning that David Valero was proclaimed runner-up in the world championship, the Italian Simone Avondetto has just won the gold medal in the under 23 race in an exciting few hours for Gobik.
It was early in the morning, in the alpine enclave of Les Gets. Amidst the misty conditions and the humidity of the night, Simone weaved a laborious triumph that ended at the finish arch, with the sensation of savoring what it feels like to be proclaimed U23 world champion.
"Of course what can I say," the biker tells us, "it's an incredible feeling, to cross first at the finish line of a world championship. It's a dream come true since I was very young".
At the finish line, in the euphoria of the moment, Simone admitted that "it was a good race. It was hard at the beginning and I couldn't follow Vidaurre, when he attacked. But I saw that he was not far ahead of us. I started to feel better and I went for it". The fact is that he had crossed the path of the outgoing champion, Martin Vidaurre, the Chilean who went all out from the start.
"Nothing changed before the race, that's the truth. I did what I always do, and already in competition, I never lost the train of the race, always in front, to find the best moment to attack and go alone," he continues. That was about halfway through the race, after noticing that "Martin was beginning to pay for the effort of such a violent start. I made a small attack that made him fail on a descent. At that moment I opened a decisive gap that forced me to go flat out until the end".
The responsibility of a champion
For Simone the new jersey It's an honor, what can I say, but at the same time a great responsibility. From now on, a lot of people expect the best from me, and that demands a lot.
That jersey has come out of the GobikThe design is one of those designs that will remain forever in the heart of the brand: "I really like the kit that Gobik made for me. Both the design and the fit and comfort are brutal. With this jersey opens new doors, and the challenges are great.
Special Edition Gobik Wilier Triestina Pirelli Team
A victory that has filled with joy the team's hosts Wilier Triestina- PirelliThe 100% Italian team, made by and for Italian athletes: "We deserved a victory like this. Everyone in the team has worked very hard for this".
Remembrance of the origins
Now to think big, the step to the elite, a leap that "will not be easy. It will take time to adapt and compete against the big boys. The beginning is clear, start with the World Cups, take the measure and look for the best positions. Then we'll see.
A Piedmontese, he dreamed of this from a very young age, when he took his first bikes in the vicinity of a town so used to seeing cycling, such as Moncalieri, near Pinerolo. In those days "my father knew how to pass on to me a passion that I keep intact today".
His growth has been constant, from more local teams, to international blocks, landing in this Wilier Triestina- Pirelli in which he is one more at the age of 22. Along the way, he has learned from the best, including the crack Vlad Dascalu, who a few years ago was also a world champion in the category, also being dressed by Gobik.
And the family of home world champions continues to grow.
