When Dario Cataldo was recruited by Trek-Segafredo last winter to be an important support rider for Giulio Ciccone at the Giro d'Italia, it was not recruiting he needed. After all, he had followed Ciccone's career from the beginning.

Dario Cataldo and Giulio Ciccone are nine years apart in age, 37 and 27 respectively, but Lanciano and Chieti in Abruzzo are only about 40 minutes apart. When Ciccone began racing as a boy in the colors of an ASD Intesa bike, his first coach was his father Michele of Cataldo.

At that point Cataldo was already in the professional peloton in Liquigas, but he stayed true to his roots. His career evolved with Quickstep and Sky, but he kept a close eye on the athletes his father mentored in his hometown of Abruzzo. One small child of a certain stature caught his attention.

"When I turned pro, Giulio was on the boys' team my father was coaching. 'Initially, Julio was a boy who wasn't as physically developed as the other players. In fact, the other boys were taller and stronger, and he was still a little smaller than the others, so people called him Juliet."

"We joked about it a bit, but when we went to watch some of the races, despite everything, we saw some signs. He had extraordinary determination. I knew then that he would be very strong once he matured physically, and I told his coach at the time. As a junior he began to give important signals, and these signals became even stronger in the amateurs."

Ciccone also grew up with Cataldo as a role model. Abruzzo has produced prominent riders in the past, such as Vito Taccone and Danilo di Luca, but it was not a heartland like Tuscany or Veneto. Cataldo proved that "show" was not out of Ciccone's reach.

In 2016, Ciccone joined Cataldo in the pro peloton and began his path to the paid ranks, winning a Giro stage at Sestra in his debut season wearing the colors of Bardiani-CSF. Three years later, Cataldo and Ciccone each won a stage at the Giro. Cataldo won solo in Como, while Ciccone won two days later in Mortirolo.

At the time, Ciccone had moved to Trek-Segafredo's WorldTour team, and the two had already discussed racing for the same team, but that winter Cataldo moved from Astana to Movistar. However, that winter, Cataldo moved from Astana to Movistar.

"Dario adds a lot of value to the team and I wanted him to come here," Ciccone said. He is 21st overall, 2:32 behind teammate Juan Pedro Lopez and 50 seconds behind Simon Yates (Bike Exchange-Jayco), the highest placed contender for the win. Ciccone said, "It's been a very positive Giro so far."

The twin climbs of Passo Lanciano and Brockhaus on stage 9 will change the overall standings dramatically. With the departure of Vincenzo Nibali last winter, Ciccone has taken on the role of full GC leader with Trek-Segafredo, and this race will be the most important of his career to date.

Now 27, Ciccone's best result in a Grand Tour is 16th in the 2019 Giro, but he looked to do better in last year's race, but a crash forced him to retire in the third week. He suffered a similar fate in the Vuelta and will go into this Giro with three weeks to see how good he is. Around the same time of year, Cataldo finished 12th in consecutive Quick-Step Giro's and then reinvented himself as an elite gregario with Sky. He knows that this is a critical time in Ciccone's development.

"Julio certainly has much better numbers than me at the same point in his career and has the support of the team and all of the staff," Cataldo said.

"When I was with Quick Step, I certainly can't say that I lacked support, but maybe it was because the team was more focused on the classics and they didn't have anyone with stage race experience. Maybe I made a mistake in my preparation or something, so now I have the extra motivation to do my best for Julio".

On Sunday, Cataldo will guide Ciccone on the first real mountain stage of the Giro. Passo Lanciano is perhaps the region's most iconic climb, and the Blockhaus is Abruzzo's most important contribution to Giro lore.

The Giro came to the region a year ago when Ciccione thrilled the hearts of the Tifosi with his second place behind Egan Bernal in Campo Felice. In this most open of Giro's, he intends to show the same kind of drive here on Sunday. I think there will be as many spectators as usual," Ciccone said. This is the first test of the Giro."

Cataldo, once his role model, is now by his side. Being in the peloton together was already special. It's great to be on the same team chasing a big goal in the Giro d'Italia."

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