MID-SEASON — MY STORY

I've reached the halfway point of my first season among the gravel elite and, looking back, it feels incredible to already be at this point.
Two wins — at Desert Gravel and at Ranxo — that back in January, as a privateer with no team behind me, I would never have imagined I could take. And, in between, a few obstacles too. It all started at The Hills, my elite debut: I felt really good in the first part of the race, then my stomach let me down. Two weeks later, in Andalusia, came my first win. A big dream come true, one that made me incredibly happy and gave me even more confidence in the path I had chosen as a privateer. Right after that success, though, a bout of flu took away part of my preparation. At The Traka I finished sixteenth among the women and, on 7 June, at Ranxo, came a second win, for which I feel truly grateful. I had also hoped to take part in the Marathon World Cup in the Dolomites, but food poisoning forced me to withdraw. Then came the Gravel World Cup, The Majestic, last weekend. I'd started well, I really had. But my knee began to hurt, the power vanished, and I finished the race very slowly, far from how I'd hoped and from what I wanted and knew I could give. I'm doing everything I can to recover as well as possible. I know it will take some patience and, probably, a period of slowing down off the bike. I had two anterior cruciate ligament surgeries a few years ago, and every now and then I feel the knee flare up again.

But there's one thing I'm sure of: I'm truly lucky to have people beside me who care about me and my recovery. It's also thanks to them that I can face this moment with serenity. Together with my team, we're reshaping the second half of the season. Some races may change from how we'd imagined them at the start of the year, and that's okay. I've learned that seasons almost never follow the path you picture in January. What I take with me, though, is a lot: two wins, so much road built on my own strength, and the desire — still intact — to take on the rest of the season with everything I can give.

Thank you to those who are always there.

— Giulia