Following today's Gran Piemonte, national coach Davide Cassani  has unveiled the Italian squad for the World Championships. As expected, Elia Viviani and Giacomo Nizzolo will lead the team.

As usual, Cassani has selected 11 riders from which the final nine starters will be chosen. Viviani and Nizzolo will be ready to sprint and will rely on experienced lead-out men Jacopo Guarnieri  (Katusha), Matteo Trentin  (Etixx - QuickStep) and  Fabio Sabatini  (Etixx - QuickStep). Daniele Bennati (Tinkoff) will be the road captain while classics riders Manuel Quinziato  (BMC) and Daniel Oss  (BMC) will be crucial if the race splits in the crosswinds. With his many strong showings, Sonny Colbrelli (Bardiani - CSF) takes the final spot and will have a joker role.

Marco Coledan (Trek - Segafredo) and  Filippo Pozzato (Wilier - Southeast) will be the two reserves. 

"We'll have two sprinters as protected riders in Viviani and Nizzolo," Cassani confirmed to Cyclingnews at the recent Giro della Toscana. "Both are going well. It's just a pity that Viviani was ill and missed the Eneco Tour. He needed it to find some endurance. To be competitive he needs to be 100% but he knows how to read a sprint.

"Bennati is like wine, he gets better as he gets older. He’s an important rider for the team. He knows how to race in the wind in Qatar and has experience. Colbrelli is riding well and I've got a lot trust in him even if there are questions about his ability in the heat and the echelons.

"Bennati, Oss, Sabatini, Guarnieri, Trentin and Quinziato can all teach people a few things about riding in echelons. We'll be a strong collective but we are aware that it'll be difficult to win."