Silvia Persico is entering a new phase of her cycling career with a new coach and fresh ambitions, with her eyes firmly set on competing at the Olympic Games.
Persico has put a hold on cyclocross racing and less emphasis on competing for the general classification at the Grand Tours in the hopes of representing her nation, Italy, at one of the sport's most significant events in Paris.
"This year, I won't do any cyclocross. I'm training only for the road season, " Persico told Cyclingnews in an interview from her UAE Team ADQ camp in Spain on Friday.
"I decided not to race cyclocross because I wanted to do one easier winter. It's not 'easy' because I'm training, but in general, I can focus on the road.
"I'm thinking about the Olympics because it's important just to participate. I'm speaking with the [national team] coaches and went to Rome to do some testing. I know the season is long, but I hope I will go; we will see."
Persico told Cyclingnews that Italy has four spots in the road events at the Olympics, where the time trial will be held on July 27 and the road race on August 4. The multi-discipline rider has earned the bronze at the Cyclocross Worlds in Fayetteville and again in the road race at the Road Worlds in Wollongong in 2022. She also secured the silver medal in the Gravel Worlds in Vento in 2023.
"I'm part of the national team now, and we are united, like when we race in the blue jersey, we like to show that we are a team. Of course, I am part of this team. How we race together and represent our country to the world is important."
Persico said she would dial back her ambitions in the Grand Tours, opting to skip La Vuelta Femenina (April 29-May 5) and shift her focus to stage wins at the Giro d'Italia Women (July 7-14) rather than the general classification. She would like to do the same at the Tour de France Femmes held after the Olympics from August 12-18, but admitted that it would largely depend on her level of fatigue at that point.
"If I could change one thing [compared to 2023], it would be to race a better calendar with more focus. I will not race the Vuelta, but I will race the Giro for sure, and depending on how I feel, the Tour. I will not go for the general classification but instead the stages," Persico said.
"I would like to be good at the Giro. I like this race because I'm Italian and like to race at my home race. It is amazing to race at home. I won't go for the general classification but mainly for the stages, and with a similar approach to the Tour," Persico said, who finished fifth at the Tour de France Femmes, seventh and eighth overall at the Giro d'Italia Women, and ninth overall at La Vuelta Femenina.
"The level of women's cycling is higher now than a couple of years ago. For example, I had the same watts this year as last year but dropped in position. I could be good at the Giro, but now I'm thinking more toward going for stages. I would like to try to win one stage at the Giro and the Tour."
Persico is starting this season with a new coach, Luca Zenti, which she said has been a significant change from working with her previous coach Davide Arzeni.
"This season was up and down, and I thought I would have had a better season. I need to work more, and I'm trying to. I have a new coach, too. Davide coached me since I was first year under-23, and so this is a bit different. We worked together for eight years, and he knew me well and knew what I needed," Persico said.
"I've been working with Luca for one month now, and I'm trying to do my best. The most important thing is that there is a good relationship and that it's important to speak, not just for training, but how I feel about the races."
Persico said she hopes to bring her new training programme and ambition into the Spring Classics, where she aims to compete at the Tour of Flanders, Amstel Gold Race and Liège-Bastogne-Liège before turning her attention to the summer racing season and the Olympic Games.
