Nibali says Giro could be a good choice for Wiggins

Vincenzo Nibali will target the Giro ahead of the Tour de France in 2013

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Sicilian looks to final week and Tre Cime di Lavaredo

As Vincenzo Nibali joined Alberto Contador, Ryder Hesjedal and Mark Cavendish in a cookery demonstration to kick off the presentation of the 2013 Giro d’Italia, Bradley Wiggins haunted their feast like Banquo’s ghost.

Wiggins was not on hand in Milan on Sunday, but his was the name on everyone’s lips when the curtain went up on the route of next year’s Giro. With over 92 kilometres of time trialling on the menu, the Giro organisers could scarcely have done more to try and entice the reigning Tour de France champion to their race.

55.5km of that total comes in one fell swoop on stage 8 from Gabicce Mare to Saltara, while there is also a 17.4km team trial on stage 2 and a 19.4km mountain time trial to Polsa four days from the finish. After coming up short against the metronomic Sky pairing of Wiggins and Chris Froome at the Tour last July, Vincenzo Nibali is all too aware of the dangers posed by the marginal gains school of cycling.

“It looks like a great Giro, and the only off-key note for me might be the 55km time trial,” Nibali said. “I’ll need to work an awful lot on time trialling in the meantime. I could see from last year’s Tour that riders like Wiggins and Froome can make up a lot of time there. It’s certainly the most dangerous stage for me.”

Asked if he expected Wiggins to be on the start line in Naples on May 4, Nibali stressed that it was too soon to tell. “I don’t know his plans. Hey, I haven’t even made my own plans yet,” Nibali joked.

“I suppose we’ll have to wait for the unveiling of the Tour and the Vuelta and then the various leaders will decide what they’re

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