While training and nutrition may have improved exponentially throughout the 21 century, it hasn’t made the business of racing any easier, retiring Ineos Grenadiers rider Salvatore Puccio has said. In fact, he said, it’s only getting harder – and more dangerous.
In an interview with Tutto Bicci, the 36-year-old talked about both the improvements and the hardships of a sport that he called “Incredibly dangerous and exhausting”.
“There’s been a revolution in nutrition,” he added. “Once upon a time, after an omelette, you’d do a regular five-hour fast. Now you start training with specific, personalized sessions, with pockets full of gels. You have to get used to absorbing 120 grams an hour – a lot.
Puccio spent a career as a dedicated helper to the team’s better known riders, and while he has never ridden the Tour de France, he rode 10 Giri d’Italia – including supporting Chris Froome to victory in 2018 – and seven Vueltas a España.
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