"Maybe I started a bit too early, what a shame. I believed in gold. But this is a heavy silver". Beaming in the press room, Matilde Rossignoli displays the medal she just won and smiles. Even with her eyes. Just minutes after becoming second in the world, she holds together with great clarity the focus on how the race unfolded, without however dismissing future projections: "yes, next year I will be part of the Lidl Trek team" - announces the 18-year-old from Bedizzole, province of Verona, a student at the Linguistic High School, born as a cyclist in the ranks of Bovolone.

"A great way to start at the game level, on the threshold of the junior category, before arriving at a structured reality that puts us in a position to give our best".

And she gave her best: "the victory at Cittiglio taught me a lot about my potential, even though the track is and remains a different context that I care deeply about, I feel it's mine and ours when I think about my experiences in the national team. Today was a nervous type of course, with short climbs, suited to my characteristics. We were a strong group, we helped each other and then my moment came".

Now she's enjoying that podium full of meaning: "and tomorrow I'll cheer for Elisa Longo Borghini, whom I had the chance to meet in the time trial group: she's a point of reference for all of us". Then, on the fact of being the daughter of a cycling legend: "I don't think it helps directly, although having my father still in the cycling environment is a privilege. A continuous sharing":