Franco Pellizotti may be 36 years old and no longer riding in the WorldTour. However, the Italian is still highly motivated and feels that he has lots to give to his Androni-Venezuela team.

Due to his biological passport case, Franco Pellizotti has had a turbulent career. Before he served a suspension, he finished third in the Giro d'Italia and won the mountains jersey at the Tour de France and he was widely regarded as one of the best grand tour riders in the world.

After making his comeback in 2012, Pellizotti has failed to reach the same lofty heights but he remains a very capable bike rider. He is the undisputed leader of the Androni-Venezuela team and still has the chance to ride some of the biggest races in the world.

He still feels that he has lots to give to cycling.

"According to my ID card I am 36 and I will even turn 37 on January 15," he tells Gazzetta.it. "Mentally and physically, I am much younger. I even find the life as a rider much better now because I have moure fun and knowledge.

"There is only one negative aspect in my life: the long periods in which I am forced to stay away from home. I think of the altitude traning camps (Etna, Sierra Nevada etc.) and the Giro d'Italia. The former is worse than the latter because at altitude you live alone. At the Giro, with stops, transfers, recovery, concentration, effort, you have less time to suffer from nostalgia.

"I have found a team, Androni-Venezuela, that suits me. It is a major team that is not obsessed or cumbersome. We did some races on the WorldTour calendar, others on the international calendar, the entire Italian calendar. It is well-balanced and not exhausting."

In 2014, Pelizzotti didn't win a single race. Nonetheless, he draws a positive balance.

"I achieved so many places of honour, even in the Giro d'Italia, in the race that I was mostly focused on: I was second on the Zoncolan," he says. "Instead of focusing on the GC, I went on the attack in the third week and found the right break. Every day I had fud and improved my condition. And that is just the mentality of the team: adventure, attack, fun."

Having started his career in 2001, Pellizotti has a long history in the sport. He regrets the current state of cycling.

"Today cycling still has a hard time," he says. "Sometimes you have the feeling that you are involved in a war between the poor. The sport pays for the general economic crisis. There are less sponsors, less races, less teams. But it is not so everywhere. In Italy, the bike has never been so popular. However, I think it is still my world. I like it and I like all those people who join the team and ask for advice. I feel recognized and valued."

Pellizotti has now started to prepare for the 2015 season where he will again be the Androni-Venezuela leader.

"Twice a week I go to the gym and twice a week I am in the pool," he says. Then I do a bit of road and mountain biking. Alone or with a bit of company: Dall'Antonia, Modolo, Dal Col, Cecchinel, Andreetta, young riders from Marchiol and Zalf, on trails and in the dirt, with some amateurs. The older I get, the more I train.

"The engine must be kept warm. Sometimes you have to open the throttle. Maybe with less horsepower than in the past but with more experience and more fun. The more you ride, the more you feel rejuvenated. That goes for everyone."