The road from his hometown Solighetto to Cordignano, start and finish line of Giro del Belvedere, is just about 30 km by bike. Alessandro Borgo, 20-year-old rider of Bahrain Victorius Development Team, has cycled it countless times. However, in his early career, he has gone well beyond his home roads and has even made his World Tour debut.

On Monday, April 21, the day of the 86th Easter Monday Classic, Borgo will return to these roads chasing his definitive breakthrough. Furthermore, he aims at stopping Italy’s winning drought, lasting since Samuele Battistella’s triumph in 2019.

Borgo already raced Giro del Belvedere in 2024: in his first year in the U23 category, he finished tenth in Villa di Cordignano, leaving him with bittersweet emotions. “Overall I would say it was a good result, especially considering that I made a mistake before the last turn. I got boxed in and had to chase throughout the sprint, missing a great opportunity. It was a good learning experience that has helped me improve and will be useful this year, because I’m going for the best possible result.”

His experience has been growing exponentially in this early part of 2025, thanks to time spent training and racing with the World Tour team of Bahrain Victorious: “As of today, I’ve spent more days with them than with the U23 team,” Borgo commented, “and I’m learning a lot. I was impressed by Mohoric, for his meticulousness and for all the advices he has given me. In a way, I can look up to him, as he’s a great rider for one-day races and classics, who has also won a Milano-Sanremo.”

For the 20-year old rider, racing the Belvedere on home soil will be a special emotion: “I’ve always heard about the Giro del Belvedere, and since when I started racing, I’ve understood firsthand why it has this legendary aura. It’s a race of great tradition, with huge crowds on the roads, and a very high technical level. With the team, we’re preparing it as best we can, as it is a race we put our eyes on.”

To aim for success, the new Bahrain Victorious Devo Team (formerly CTF Victorious) features an experienced team of almost all-Italian athletes, with the sole exception of Finnish rider Kasper Borremans. The rest of the squad is made by rookie Leonardo Consolidani, and by familiar faces on the roads of Belvedere, such as Bryan Olivo and Marco Andreaus.

However, competition will be fierce over the 168 km course, starting with the defending champions of UAE Emirates Gen Z. Beside them, it’s another great debutant, Red Bull – Bora – hansgrohe Rookies, lining up the Junior World Champion Lorenzo Finn and last year Giro del Belvedere runner-up Davide Donati.