The last question about Fabio Aru’s race schedule has been answered. Today La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that the Italian will ride Paris-Nice and skip Tirreno-Adriatico.

Last week, Aru had yet to decide which of the two events he will do but during the training camp in Calpe he has made his decision. This year his main goal and as he has done very little racing in France during his career, the Race to the Sun is a chance to get acquainted with the country. He will follow a similar recipe to the one used by Vincenzo Nibali in 2014 when Alexandre Vinokourov persuaded him to ride the French race and skip his title defence in Tirreno-Adriatico. This year Nibali will lead Astana in the Italian race.

Aru’s race schedule for the first half of the season is now fully known. He will start at the Volta a la Communidad Valenciana and then ride the Volta ao Algarve, Paris - Nice, the Tour of the Basque Country and the Ardennes Classics before taking a break and going to altitude to prepare for the Tour.