Il Lombardia Under 23 - Gara Ciclistica Internazionale Under 23

Frenchman Brieuc Rolland won the 96th edition of "Il Lombardia U23," which started and finished in Oggiono, in the province of Lecco. The rider from Groupama FDJ Continental won in a photo finish against Tuscan Federico Savino, from Soudal Quick Step Devo, with Slovenian Glivar rounding out the podium in third place. Norwegian Svestad Bardseng, who was undoubtedly the most combative rider of the day, finished fourth.

Originally from Saint-Brieuc, a French town with 48,059 inhabitants in the Côtes-d'Armor department of Brittany, overlooking the Gulf of Saint-Malo, the 21-year-old winner (his birthday is August 13) had previously won a stage and the overall classification of the U23 Peace Race. Rolland is also the national road race runner-up and finished eighth in the Tour de l'Avenir. In Italy, he won a stage of the Giro della Lunigiana as a junior in 2021.

THE RACE REPORT
A total of 157 riders started in Oggiono. The course consisted of 4 laps of a rolling circuit, followed by the climbs to Ghisallo, Villa Vergano, Colle Brianza, and Marconaga di Ello, the last difficulty of the day, just 6 km from the finish. In the early stages, several timid breakaways were attempted, featuring Austrian Putz (Tirol KTM Cycling Team) and Swiss rider Casagrande from Velo Club Mendrisio. The maximum gap was 30 seconds. On the third lap, Belarusian Belohvosciks (UC Monaco) tried to break away, but the peloton quickly closed the gap, and the race remained compact for a few kilometers. The situation changed during the last of the four laps, when fourteen riders launched an attack, followed 20 seconds later by a second group of 17, which included Italian champion Zamperini. Meanwhile, the main peloton was 45 seconds behind. The race heated up on the climb to Madonna del Ghisallo (from the Bellagio side), where Norwegian Svestad Bardseng (Arkea) went solo. Eight riders chased him: Savino (Soudal Quick Step), Ambrosini (MBHBank Colpack Ballan CSB), Eritrean Zeray (Q36.5 Continental), Dutchman Van Bekkum (Visma Lease a Bike), Belgian Servranckx (Soudal), Frenchman Rolland (Groupama FDJ), Slovenian Glivar (UAE Emirates Gen Z), and Swiss rider Aebersold (Lidl Trek Future Racing). The Norwegian leader was caught on the descent from Asso, while behind, a group of 15 riders gave chase, including the Italian champion Zamperini, Gillet, Wood, Mattio, Arrighetti, Nespoli, and Golliker. On the climb to Ravellino, Rolland, Svestad Bardseng, Glivar, and Savino made a move, later joined by Zeray, who was dropped again before the KOM. The decisive action occurred on the climb to Marconaga di Ello, where Rolland and Glivar pulled away. However, Savino refused to give up and caught the leaders in the final kilometer. The race ended with a sprint finish, with the Frenchman Rolland narrowly beating Savino and Glivar in a photo finish.

FINAL RESULTS
170.6 km in 3h 51’57, average speed 44.130 km/h

1. ROLLAND Brieuc (Fra-Groupama FDJ Continental)
2. SAVINO Federico (Ita-Soudal Quick Step Devo)
3. GLIVAR Gal (Slo-UAE Team Emirates Gen Z)
4. SVESTAD Bardseng Embret (Nor-Arkea b&B Hotels Continental) 6”
5. AMBROSINI Matteo (Ita-Team MBH Bank Colpack Ballan) 1'10"
6. GOLLIKER David Joshua (Gbr-Groupama - FDJ) 1'13"
7. AEBERSOLD Nils (Sui-Lidl Trek Future Racing) 1’16”
8. TROELSEN Tore (Den-Team ColoQuick) 1’58”
9. MATTIO Pietro (Ita-Team Visma - Lease a Bike) 2'05"
10. SOENENS Viktor (Bel-Soudal Quick - Step Devo Team) 2'25"