http://www.eurosport.com/home/pages/v4/l0/s18/e9407/sport_lng0_spo18
_evt9407_sto775971.shtml
After a brilliant 2005 season and with big hopes for 2006, newly crowned
UCI Pro Tour champion Danilo Di Luca is still unsure about the Tour of
Lombardy. Nagging knee problems could keep killer from performing up to
par in Lombardy, a race he had originally intended on winning.
While the Liquigas-Bianchi star had originally intended to win the
October 15 Giro di Lombardia, Di Luca was singing a different tune to
L'Equipe after pulling out of Sunday's Paris-Tours 200 kilometres into
the race.
He was reportedly scheduled to visit his physiotherapist Antonio Salvi
on Monday before deciding on whether to participate at the final event
of the pro season before his home crowd.
The 29-year-old champion promised to be at the start line, however.
"Whatever happens I'll take the start, but in this state that might be
the best I can hope for," Di Luca told the French sports daily after
retiring from Paris-Tours.
"This week the pain was bearable, because we weren't forcing things very
much in training, but today I was stuck and in these conditions it was
useless to continue."
Prior to the race team manager Roberto Amadio was promising
Eurosport.com that Di Luca not only planned on racing in next week's
Italian classic, but that his "objective" was to win.
"Di Luca prefers Lombardy to Paris-Tours, and while he's already won the
pro tour, the conditions are right for him to have a good Lombardy,"
Amadio said prior to Sunday's race.
Tour of Italy in 2006.... Tour de France in 2007?
The Liquigas boss had faith that his star could shine in Lombardy, but
with the title already under wraps he has already started thinking about
2006.
"For next year, we've already talked about him riding the Tour of Italy
to win the Tour of Italy," Amadio told Eurosport.com.
"And after his next goal is to win the world championship."
Di Luca took two of the three Ardennes classics in 2005 winning the
Amstel Gold and the Fleche Wallonne in succession.
"He'd like to take the classics [next season]," Amadio said. "It's not
going to be his top priority like this year, but you never know how the
tour goes."
The two certainties are that Di Luca wants to transform his fourth place
finish in the 2005 Giro d'Italia into a win, and that he wants the other
title of World Champion, which Tom Boonen claimed at the World
Championships in Madrid last month.
"The main goals are going to be the Tour of Italy and the World
Championships."
And one day maybe could Di Luca possibly be riding to win the Tour de
France?
"Yes," Amadio told us. "Year after year we're going to change the
program. I think that once the day comes when he wins the Tour of Italy,
he has the potential to also win the Tour de France."
If his squad can replicate the success of 2005, Amadio will be happy.
"For a new team we're satisfied," he concluded. "Like everything, at
first it's not easy, but we found an extraordinary rider in Di Luca."