Certainly Valerio Conti did not expect that from his season debut, which took place at the Tour of Sharjah last January, to his next competitive engagement, practically three months would pass, nor that the emotional and physical journey to reach the Tour of Turkey, his comeback race, would be so arduous and demanding.

What made the initial months of his 2026 decidedly tortuous and quite unusual was first the broken arm and wrist which, with February almost upon him, sidelined him for more than a month and, subsequently, the more recent and sudden passing of his father Franco which deeply affected both him and his entire family.

With a spirit far from its best and encouraged by those close to him, Valerio nonetheless embarked for the Presidential Tour of Turkiye where his Solution Tech NIPPO Rali teammates had the opportunity to embrace him in person before launching together into a race that for him will be anything but easy to complete.

"Everything was going well until a few days ago when my father passed away" the class of '93 told our microphones. "I immediately went back home to my mom in Rome, and honestly I didn't want to come here because I don't feel at my best, but my girlfriend and my mother encouraged me to leave, telling me that my father would have been happier to see me happy on the bike rather than at home, and so here I am now".

Obviously the loss, and the difficult days that followed, made it extremely complicated to train on the bike with the usual determination and intensity, so much so that, as Conti himself revealed, the legs with which he presented himself at the start in Çeşme are far from excellent.

"I felt things were starting to improve, I had begun my first intensity work but, honestly, once what happened occurred, my mind no longer wanted to do hard efforts and similar workouts. Basically, I lost all the fitness I was managing to build up and therefore, to be honest, I'm not arriving here in good shape. I'll try anyway to finish the race and I'll take advantage of the situation to put kilometers in my legs, perhaps helping the team chase down the various breakaways of the day".

So things for Valerio, from a purely athletic point of view, can only improve in the coming weeks and his team can play an important role in this process, which in the last four years, according to the Lazio rider's own words, has given him so much.

"This team has given me the opportunity to see cycling in a different way, to live it with true passion and not like a soldier, and for this I'm very happy to be here. From the outside it doesn't seem like it but it's truly a team that teaches you who you are and that's important" Conti stated with great emphasis, who since 2023 has seen his team progressively change its face.

"We started, when we were still sponsored by Corratec, with great difficulties and we were far from being a powerhouse, but season after season it always got better, so much so that now riders with a certain amount of experience are arriving and I'm sure next year will be even better. On my part, I can say I'll do everything to make it grow even more" explained the former UAE and Astana rider.

"The atmosphere has now become a bit more professional and, even though personally I don't like that exaggerated professionalism where certain things are forced upon you, I think it's right that there are rules. With these and a healthy dose of fun, results are now coming, so it's fine like this, we're heading in the right direction" Conti pointed out, who recently welcomed favorably the series of positive performances registered by his teammates in recent outings.

"We're happy with what we've accomplished so far. Personally, I hope I too can soon manage to give a concrete contribution beyond the moral support that I never fail to provide" said a hopeful Valerio who, in this regard, will have to wait for the end of the Tour of Turkey to understand how to direct the rest of the season and what objectives to aim for.

"I don't know what my program will be because the idea was to define it once this race is closed. For now let's see if we can accumulate kilometers and regain some spirit. To regain good fitness now, between training and races, it will take at least a month. Dedicate a victory to my father? That would be nice, even though for him, even more than winning, he liked to see me having fun on the bike" was Valerio's genuine closing remark before saying goodbye to us and tackling a race that perhaps, even more than the pedal stroke, could help invigorate his spirit.