Nicolò Garibbo is now a familiar face to tuttoBICI. We had left him at the end of 2023 as the winner of the Elite Athletes Oscar with many dreams and hopes for the future, and above all the desire to start winning again. During 2024, the Ligurian athlete succeeded several times, collecting good results throughout the shortened season, literally plagued by that cursed misfortune that continues to haunt him. However, Nicolò never lost heart, he fell, got back up, started over, and now in the Middle East he is experiencing the first part of his adventure with the Japanese JCL Team Ukyo.

Yesterday we saw him involved in a spectacular crash at the finish line: his bike literally took flight and he ended up in the barriers, fortunately without suffering any consequences. Nicolò got up, as he always does, checked that everything was okay and then accompanied his bike to the finish line, with some regret of course, but with his usual smile. "Of course, me and my bad luck..." he told us as soon as he saw us, assuring us that at least this time nothing was broken. Just a few days ago we had spoken with Nicolò about the importance of seizing opportunities, but also about the need to shake off the misfortune that has been accompanying him for far too long.

"I'm 26 and I'm gradually discovering cycling. It's strange to do it at my age, as the age has dropped significantly and now young people are expected to deliver immediately. It's a particularly stressful climate, and many have exploded quickly and then fallen back brutally. I'm trying to proceed step by step, enjoying everything I find," Nicolò said with a clear and aware look at an Italian and international cycling scene that moves increasingly faster, risking leaving some behind. This is just the beginning of a conversation about the dreams and hopes of a boy chasing his goal without ever wanting to give up. "Last year I confirmed myself in the amateur ranks and, although the kilometers are completely different, the results gave me the push to believe in my abilities and try to dare. The professional races were a great test, I felt good and thanks to the UCI points I collected, I received the call from Team Ukyo, I almost couldn't believe it."

In 2024, he gained experience under the direction of Francesco Chicchi in the Technipes #inemiliaRomagna Team and now he has already thrown himself headlong into the fray. It was a big leap from an all-Italian team to a Japanese-based one, a true adventure that Nicolò faced head-on and also like an explorer searching for a new world. "For me, everything is new and magical, a very different environment from where I was before. In the previous team, we didn't lack anything, but now here we literally have everything at our disposal. Sometimes it seems so strange that there are so many people ready to work for me - mechanics, masseurs, the entire staff - and yet it's all true," he continued. "The team is half Italian and half Japanese, and the two cultures mix a bit. The Japanese are much more meticulous and enthusiastic. The team's patron is in our WhatsApp group and often writes that he's happy with what we're doing. Sometimes it's just a simple message, but it's enough to give us an extra boost."

Already in Alula, the Team Ukyo guys were absolutely the most combative, always attacking, always ready to challenge the group and work hard to put Alessandro Fancellu in the best positions. In Oman, the terrain is slightly different, but the goal remains the same: always try. "Our sports director Manuele Boaro is fantastic. He is extremely rigorous in his work, and I believe he is perfectly cut out for it, but at the same time, he has only recently stopped racing and is still partly a rider. He gives us so much advice and is very available, making us do everything he would have wanted someone to tell him. With Veloview, he analyzes every single element, and I believe this is an added value that allows us to get even more into the race without being physically there." For Garibbo, Boaro has become a true point of reference, and following his instructions, no one on the team has ever held back.

In the first stage, D'Amato almost made the podium, and yesterday, if not for the crash, Nicolò himself would have secured a good placement. Today in Oman, the race gets even tougher, and Ukyo is ready to be present once again. Nicolò Garibbo can't wait to get back in the game and finally take his revenge. Many dreams pass through his mind: to improve more and more and perhaps try to be at the start of the Trofeo Laigueglia, his home race, the race he has always dreamed of.