Elisa Longo Borghini trained in the Paris rain one last time on Friday before representing Italy in the Olympic Games women’s individual time trial on Saturday.
The recent Giro d’Italia winner already has two bronze medals won in the road races in Rio in 2016 and Tokyo 2021 but would love another. She finished fifth in the Rio time trial and 10th on the hillier Tokyo course and will then lead the Italian team in the road race next weekend, alongside Elisa Balsamo, Silvia Persico and Elisa Cecchini.
“I’d be happy with another medal. Whatever the colour of an Olympic medal, it’s worth gold,” Longo Borghini told the Italian website Tuttobiciweb.
“There’s nothing like climbing on the podium at the Olympics to receive a medal. You feel like you’ve really achieved something.”
Longo Borghini has stepped up a level in 2024. She won the Tour of Flanders during a superb spring campaign and then led the Giro d’Italia Women from start to finish. She won the opening Giro d’Italia time trial by a second ahead of Australia’s Grace Brown, with Brodie Chapman third.
Brown is one of the favourites in the 35-rider women’s time trial in Paris, and starts next to last, at 15:19 CET on Saturday, just 90 seconds ahead of last rider and gold medal favourite Chloé Dygert of the USA.
Longo Borghini starts at 15:10 CET, 90 seconds after Lotte Kopecky of Belgium. Demi Vollering is off at 15:15. Ellen van Dijk of the Netherlands is off a little earlier, at 15:00 CET. The women cover the same 32.4km course as the men, with the route heading out of central Paris to the Bois de Vincennes park for a series of loops before a fast return to the city centre and a finish on the stunning Pont Alexandre III.
“A medal in the time trial will be tough to win but I’ve never been in such good form. I felt good after winning the Giro and have rested up and done speed work before coming to Paris,” Longo Borghini explained.
“I’ve worked hard on my time trailing and want to improve even more. That’s one reason why I’m here.”
If Longo Borghini doesn’t win a medal, she hopes her Lidl-Trek teammates can.
“I’d love for Ellen to win,” she said of Van Dijk.
“She gave birth to a boy in October and it is amazing that she’s back racing after just a few months. She’s a role model. I hope she’s recovered as much as possible from her injury. She lost some muscle because of it but I know how hard she’s worked to make a comeback.”
