"I did it for the crostata." These were the words uttered by Elisa Longo Borghini in the moments after she won the Tour of Flanders.
At the time, I didn't think much of it. I didn't know what crostata was, and it seemed like a passing comment, an inside joke perhaps. Then the Italian won again, and said it again.
This time it was at De Brabantse Pijl, earlier this week, where she soloed clear and won by 41 seconds. Why did she do it? "Only for crostata!" she wrote on X. As a capital-J journalist, I figured it was time for an investigation.
First, I had to figure out what crostata was. This was the easy part. A quick Google search returned countless images of pies, the sweet, crusty type that get left on windowsills in cartoons.
Wikipedia then stepped in. Crostata is a sort of fruit tart, an Italian dessert, that dates back to a 15th century cookbook, it told me. Almost all of the pictures show it to be topped with a lattice design, so I assume this is the going technique.
Facts established, the big question remained: why is it helping Longo Borghini win bike races?
I turned to Lidl-Trek’s press officer, Amy Cameron, for the answers. "It is a winning treat," she explained, one made by the team's chef, Mirko Sut. I asked if she has ever tried it. "Have I tried it?" she scoffed. "I’ve been eating Mirko's crostata longer than Elisa when me and him were on BMC together! It is delicious."
Suddenly, everything made sense. The dessert isn't a performance nutrition fad. No, it's a positive reinforcement ruse, a Pavlovian trick as old as time. Win race, get crostata. Longo Borghini had cracked the system.
I wanted to know more. Is there a secret ingredient? Does Sut do something special to the crostata? "He just perfected it, I believe," said Cameron. "He makes this incredible pistachio one that is unreal." The recipe, however, is top secret.
So there you go. For anyone wondering how SD Worx-Protime could be beaten this year, the answer wasn’t race tactics or newfangled tech, it was the lure of a simple, Italian dessert. Crostata, Lidl-Trek’s secret weapon.
Elsewhere on social media, Mathieu van der Poel lifts The Rock, Kristen Faulkner shows off her book collection, and Geraint Thomas sits through a lonely breakfast.
1. Who needs energy gels when you've got crostata?
Only for crostata! https://t.co/yCpgg3PnODApril 10, 2024
2. I'm sure it tastes better than it looks
The recipe is a secret though 🤫 https://t.co/NC5m1hEat4 pic.twitter.com/X4ZMRUrkeMApril 10, 2024
3. Here's another helping of Longo Borghini for you. She's right, Lidl-Trek did her dirty with the winner's photo
I promise I’m happy and in real life I smile too! 🤓 https://t.co/O0HAmW8b9iApril 10, 2024
4. Mathieu van der Poel didn't just win any old rock at Paris-Roubaix
5. One for the stats fans...
Van Der Poel is the first rainbow jersey wearer to win Paris-Roubaix since Lotte Kopecky in 2024.April 7, 2024
6. We'd all be this cool, breathing through our noses, after soloing 60km across the cobbles, right?
🌈 Winner 🇳🇱@mathieuvdpoel watching the sprint for 2nd place on the Roubaix velodrome. 🚴🏻♂️🌈 Le vainqueur 🇳🇱@mathieuvdpoel a pu assister au sprint pour la 2ème place sur le vélodrôme de Roubaix.🚴🏻♂️ #ParisRoubaix pic.twitter.com/MUdfO1q71oApril 7, 2024
7. It turns out I've been putting my mitts on wrong this whole time
8. If you liked seeing Adam Yates' dog, Zoe, in a yellow jersey last July, you'll love this gallery
9. It's a wonder how Kristen Faulkner finds time to race her bike around all her reading
10. Poor Geraint, alone, with nothing but a bottle of Actimel to talk to
Another morning full of bants with my mates at training camp 👍 pic.twitter.com/C7R383Bo58April 10, 2024
11. To be fair to the drone, I wouldn't want to follow Tom Pidcock downhill either
12. Don't forget to lift your front wheels to the flowers this spring
13. Here's how sisters Elynor and Zoe Bäckstedt spent the 20th anniversary of their father's Paris-Roubaix victory
14. And finally, my personal favourite this week, the sight of Jay Vine giving a thumbs up after his terrible crash at Itzulia Basque Country. Heal up, Jay!
