55th GP Città' di Camaiore - 1.2

Italy, August 4, 2004

2003 Results Results Past winners

Bettini back on track

Bettini makes his move
Photo ©: Sirotti

As the Olympic road race approaches, Paolo Bettini a morale boosting win at the Italian classic GP Città' di Camaiore on Wednesday. Bettini put in the decisive closing attack to win by 10" ahead of Saeco's in-form Danilo DI Luca on the tough Camaiore circuit. Unable to defend his title at last weekend's HEW Cyclassics World Cup race, Bettini has shown himself to be in form but missing the small spark necessary to take him to victory.

"My month has arrived and I'm feeling better sensations," Bettini said after his win. "If at the Olympic Games we can get a good group, I think the result will come."

The race was marked by a four man escape featuring Giro d'Italia revelation Emanuele Sella, Ruggiero Marzoli, Leonardo Bertagnolli and Ryan Cox. The foursome couldn't hold off the heavy favourites, however, as Saeco and Quick.Step-Davitamon worked to shut down the moves and set up their single day specialists. The Italian public delighted at the sight of Giro d'Italia winner Damiano Cunego (Saeco) on the attack, but it was Bettini who took centre stage when the nearly 200km race came down to the moment of truth.

Bettini launched the decisive attack on the final circuit and a half-hearted chase by Saeco's two Giro champions Simoni and Cunego couldn't bring back the flying Quick.Step leader. Bettini held ten seconds over the chasers, who were themselves swept up by a larger group coming into the finish. Danilo Di Luca tried to salvage Saeco's day and managed to take the field sprint for second, followed by Bettini's faithful teammate Luca Paolini, named recently for the Athens Olympic team in place of Michele Bartoli.

Photography

Images by Fotoreporter Sirotti

Damiano Cunego (Saeco) leads the charge up the Monte Pitoro
Paolo Bettini (Quick.Step-Davitamon) makes the winning move
Bettini gets a gap that noone can close
Gilberto Simoni (Saeco) tries to chase but leaves it too late
Paolo Bettini (Quick.Step-Davitamon) gets the win and shows he's ready for the Olympics
Bettini's teammate Luca Paolini completed the podium after Danilo Di Luca took second
A special hug for race winner Bettini
The podium: Danilo Di Luca (l), Paolo Bettini, Luca Paolini

Results - 193.7 km

1 Paolo Bettini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon                   4.18.43 (43.700 km/h)
2 Danilo Di Luca (Ita) Saeco                                    0.10
3 Luca Paolini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon
4 Frank Schleck (Lux) Team CSC
5 Antonio D'aniello (Ita) Miche
6 Massimo Giunti (Ita) Domina Vacanze
7 Pasquale Muto (Ita) Miche
8 Massimiliano Gentili (Ita) Domina Vacanze
9 Paolo Bossoni (Ita) Lampre
10 Przemyslaw Niemec (Pol) Miche
11 Gabriele Missaglia (Ita) Team Barloworld-Androni Giocattoli
12 Bo Hambueger (Den) Acqua & Sapone-Caffe' Mokambo
13 Luca Mazzanti (Ita) Ceramiche Panaria-Margres
14 Alexandr Kolobnev (Rus) Domina Vacanze
15 Francesco Casagrande (Ita) Lampre
16 Tiaan Kannemeyer (RSA) Team Barloworld-Androni Giocattoli
17 Oscar Pozzi (Ita) Tenax
18 Gianni Faresin (Ita) Gerolsteiner
19 Luis Felipe Laverde Jimenez (Col) Formaggi Pinzolo Fiave'
20 Timothy Jones (Zim) Domina Vacanze
21 Volodymir Gustov (Ukr) Fassa Bortolo
22 Filippo Simeoni (Ita) Domina Vacanze
23 Michele Scotto D'abusco (Ita) Lampre
24 Igor Pugaci (Mda) De Nardi
25 Damiano Cunego (Ita) Saeco
26 Gilberto Simoni (Ita) Saeco
27 Ivan Fanelli (Ita) Amore & Vita-Beretta                      0.45
28 Matteo Tosatto (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
29 Cristian Moreni (Ita) Alessio-Bianchi
30 Marco Serpellini (Ita) Gerolsteiner
31 Peter Luttenberger (Aut) Team CSC
32 Fortunato Baliani (Ita) Ceramiche Panaria-Margres
33 Matteo Cappe' (Ita) Formaggi Pinzolo Fiave'
34 Maurizio Carta (Ita) Miche
35 Ruggero Borghi (Ita) De Nardi
36 Giancarlo Ginestri (Ita) Tenax
37 Scott Davis (Aus) Ceramiche Panaria-Margres
38 Leonardo Giordani (Ita) De Nardi
39 Jamie Burrow (GBr) Amore & Vita-Beretta
40 Leonardo Bertagnolli (Ita) Saeco
41 Mirko Celestino (Ita) Saeco                                  1.20
42 Massimo Iannetti (Ita) Domina Vacanze                        3.00
43 Raimondas Rumsas (Ltu) Acqua & Sapone-Caffe' Mokambo
44 Gianluca Tonetti (Ita) Tenax
45 Leonardo Scarselli (Ita) Colombia-Selle Italia
46 Marlon Alirio Perez Arango (Col) Colombia-Selle Italia
47 Valery Kobzarenko (Ukr) Acqua & Sapone-Caffe' Mokambo
48 Sergio Barbero (Ita) Lampre
49 Filippo Pozzato (Ita) Fassa Bortolo
50 James Lewis Perry (RSA) Team Barloworld-Androni Giocattoli
51 Manuel Calvente Gorbas (Spa) Team CSC
52 Andrea Rossi (Ita) De Nardi
53 Nicki Soresen (Den) Team CSC
54 Alexandre Bazhenov (Rus) Domina Vacanze
55 Giuliano Figueras (Ita) Ceramiche Panaria-Margres
56 Andrea Peron (Ita) Team CSC
57 Devis Miorin (Ita) De Nardi
58 Darren Lill (RSA) Team Barloworld-Androni Giocattoli
59 Domenico Passuello (Ita) Amore & Vita-Beretta
60 Cristiano Frattini (Ita) Tenax
61 Daniele Pietropolli (Ita) Tenax
62 Raffaele Illiano (Ita) Colombia-Selle Italia
63 Emanuele Sella (Ita) Ceramiche Panaria-Margres
64 Ruggiero Marzoli (Ita) Acqua & Sapone-Caffe' Mokambo
65 Laurent Dufaux (Swi) Quick.Step-Davitamon
66 Balazs Rohtmer (Hun) Miche
67 Gabriele Bosisio (Ita) Tenax
68 Kristjan Fajt (Slo) Tenax
69 Vladimir Miholjevic (Cro) Alessio-Bianchi
70 Pietro Caucchioli (Ita) Alessio-Bianchi
71 Raffaele Ferrara (Ita) Alessio-Bianchi
72 Franco Pellizzotti (Ita) Alessio-Bianchi
73 Sean Sullivan (Aus) Team Barloworld-Androni Giocattoli
74 Ryan Cox (RSA) Team Barloworld-Androni Giocattoli
75 Marcel Strauss (Swi) Gerolsteiner
76 Stefano Ciuffi (Ita) Amore & Vita-Beretta
77 Fabio Borghesi (Ita) Miche
78 Aleksandre Kuschynski (Blr) Amore & Vita-Beretta

Past Winners

2003 Marco Serpellini (Ita)          193 kms in 4.37.31
2002 Davide Rebellin (Ita)           193 kms in 4.18.43
2001 Michele Bartoli (Ita)           197 kms in 4.36.36
2000 Wladimir Belli (Ita)            196 kms in 4.41.32
1999 Massimo Donati (Ita)            198 kms in 4.18.44
1998 Andrea Tafi (Ita)	             198 kms in 4.43.25
1997 Alexander Gontschenkov (Rus)    198 kms in 4.30.41
1996 Alberto Elli (Ita)              209 kms in 4.46.42
1995 Luca Scinto (Ita)               209 kms in 4.52.53
1994 Gianluca Bortolami (Ita)        209 kms in 5.17.32
1993 Massimo Podenzana (Ita)         209 kms in 4.55.55
1992 Davide Cassani (Ita)            209 kms in 5.06.25
1991 Gianni Faresin (Ita)            259 kms in 4.57.00
1990 Giorgio Furlan (Ita)            253 kms in 6.14.07
1989 Franco Ballerini (Ita)
1988 Rolf Sörensen (Den)             233 kms in 5.41.00
1987 Gianni Bugno (Ita)              229 kms in 5.00.35
1986 Claudio Corti (Ita)                        5.02.00
1985 Alberto Volpi (Ita)
1984 Roberto Ceruti (Ita)            218 kms in 5.22.52
1983 Moreno Argentin (Ita)           263 kms in 6.21.58
1982 Jean-Marie Wampers (Bel)        210 kms in 5.10.00
1981 Giuseppe Saronni (Ita)          209 kms in 5.03.00
1980 Silvano Contini (Ita)
1979 Giuseppe Saronni (Ita)          199 kms in 4.58.00
1977 Franco Bitossi (Ita)            199 kms in 4.59.00
1976 Walter Riccomi (Ita)
1975 Francesco Moser (Ita)
1974 Giacinto Santambroggio (Ita)
1973 Emilio-M. Rodriguez (Col)
1972 Roger De Vlaeminck (Bel)
1971 Eddy Merckx (Bel)
1970 Mauro Simonetti (Ita)
1969 Ernico Paolini (Ita)
1968 Gianpiero Macchi (Ita)
1967 Lucien Dalla-Bona (Ita)
1966 Bruno Mealli (Ita)

Past winners by Mario Stiehl, www.world-of-cycling.com