Filippo Ganna has described Paris-Roubaix as a game of Russian roulette but insisted he is ready to fight across every section cobbled in the hope of lifting the famous winner’s pave trophy.
The Ineos Grenadiers rider has opted for a block of training at home in Italy rather than ride the Tour of Flanders and a long stay in northern Europe. He did a solo reconnaissance ride after Dwars door Vlaanderen last week and will only travel to France on Friday.
Ganna’s prowess on the track and time trial is well-known and he confirmed his Classics credentials with second place at Milan-San Remo after being able to go with Tadej Pogčar’s attack on the Poggio.
“When I’m relaxed and ready for battle, I think I can do something good. Obviously, you can't predict anything at Roubaix but I want to try my best. I know it can change my life and give me a place in the history of the sport,” Ganna told the French newspaper L’Equipe.
“I dream of finishing with the pave’ trophy in my hands, but it won’t be easy. I'm going to fight every metre to try to win. I feel ready.”
Ganna won the under-23 version of Paris-Roubaix in 2016 and has the physique to handle the rough French pave’ but he appears to have a love-hate relationship with Paris-Roubaix.
“Paris-Roubaix is like having a gun to your head, it’s like playing Russian roulette. Each time you pull the trigger, you hope the bullet doesn't come out,” he joked.
“People say that Roubaix is a fantastic race, but you can't say that. It's fun for people watching on television or from the side of the road in a campervan but the riders can’t say they like it. You’d have to be a bit crazy to like Roubaix, it's so painful, so hard on your body.
“Yet everyone is motivated to try to win it and so make their place in cycling history, like the great champions of the past, like Moser and Merckx.”
Ganna did his final Paris-Roubaix reconnaissance ride last week, the day after he rode Dwars door Vlaanderen, to avoid bad weather later in the week and to then take a break and train quietly at home.
“I rode 175km, all the cobbled sectors,” Ganna pointed out, clocking up five hours in the saddle as he tried to memorise the key sectors and understand when he needs to be positioned near the front.
“After that, I took two days to recover. I had a massage each day too, to recharge the batteries, because it had been a rather intense block of racing. After that, I started my build-up for Roubaix with my coach Dario Cioni.”
Ganna did repeated efforts in training, mixing torque power work with race simulation intervals, during long rides on the rolling hills near his home on the border between Italy and Switzerland. Everything, including a final taper in the second half of the week, was planned for Paris-Roubaix.
“The efforts you have to make during Paris-Roubaix are one or two minutes, where you tell yourself that you have to be first to the top of a bridge. It's not like a sprint or a time trial, it’s more like two minutes on the track,” Ganna explained.
Leading Ineos Grenadiers
With Tom Pidcock already focused on the Ardennes Classics and Ben Turner out after fracturing his arm in the Tour of Flanders. Ganna will lead Ineos Grenadiers on Sunday.
Luke Rowe provides the race experience as road captain, while Magnus Sheffield, 18-year-old Josh Tarling and Kim Heiduk will line up alongside Michal Kwiatkowski and Connor Swift.
Ineos Grenadiers tried to split the peloton early last year and Ganna was up front after the key Forest of Arenberg section, only to blow up later and finish 35th.
This year Ganna is fitter, stronger and more focused on the Classics, knowing he has the full support of the team. He could be a major rival to Mathieu van der Poel, Wout van Aert and anyone else.
“I have great teammates who can help me. They trust me and at Milan- San Remo I showed that their work was not for nothing. I hope that they’ll also see me as a leader for Roubaix,” Ganna said modestly, while also sensing his opportunity to make his own cycling history and perhaps fit that famous cobblestone trophy on Sunday.
