In a season interrupted by a coronavirus outbreak, form lines are hard to read, but the list of potential winners of the men's individual time trial at the World Championships in Imola, Italy, on Friday is divided into two groups: those who have ridden the Tour de France and those who have not.

Tom Dumoulin (Netherlands) finished second behind Tadej Pogacar last Saturday in La Planche des Belles Fils, the best result among World Championship competitors in the Tour's only time trial. However, there is no telling how he will fare against riders such as Filippo Ganna (ITA) and defending champion Rohan Dennis (AUS), who have prepared specifically for the 31.7 km.

"Their recent times in Tirreno-Adriatico were really super fast, especially Filippo Ganna, who was very strong. 'Filippo Ganna in particular was very strong. If he has the same legs as Tirreno, it will be hard for anyone else to beat him."

"It will be very interesting to see who will be at the front tomorrow, a Tour rider or a non-Tour rider. That's also important considering the Olympics," he added.

If the Tokyo Olympics are held next year, the road race will take place on the Saturday after the 2021 Tour arrives in Paris, with the individual time trial three days later. Given that Dumoulin's reverence for the Olympics persuaded him to delay his desire to test himself as a Grand Tour rider in 2016, just days after finishing seventh overall in the Tour, the chance to test himself in Tokyo helped convince him to line up in both races of this world championship would be clear.

"I actually thought I was very tired, but it's not that bad," said Dumoulin, who confirmed his participation on Tuesday. In the last few days of the Tour, I already assumed that I would be in the time trial for the World Championships." I had already decided a few days before the Tour that I was going to do the World Championships time trial. Luckily, here I am and I'm looking forward to it."

Dumoulin likes the fact that the time trial will have some uphill climbs. He won the world title three years ago at the top of Mount Fløyen in Bergen, Norway, and he took the bronze medal at the 2014 Ponferrada in Spain by finishing in the final section of the rugged course. In contrast, Imola's route is shorter at 31.7 km and mostly flat, but the Dutchman hopes to be competitive.

"It's not a dream course, but with good legs you can do a lot," Dumoulin said. I feel good and I'm looking forward to it." If I can do the same time as I did in the Tour de France time trial, I'll be in contention for a medal."

Dumoulin will compete in Sunday's road race as leader of the Dutch team. Double champion Paolo Bettini told La Nazione on Thursday: "I always go to the world championships and then see how I'm doing. Running time trials is hardly the recommended tapering to a road race with 5,000 meters of climbing, but Dumoulin seems to be following this credo.

"It's not ideal. I haven't ridden my bike more than two hours a day since Paris. That's not good for a road race," Dumoulin said, predicting that Sunday's rain forecast would make the race more draining. 'A lot of wear and tear is expected.'

Dumoulin has also confirmed his participation in the Amstel Gold Race on October 10 before ending his 2020 season at the Vuelta a España (October 20-November 8).

"I don't intend to train at altitude or in the mountains (beforehand). Past experience has taught me that it is very difficult to compete for a prize in a Grand Tour if you don't have mountain training," he said, adding that while he may not be aiming for GC in Spain, if the Slovenian starts, his teammate, recent Tour runner-up and 2019 Vuelta champion seemed to acknowledge that he might be able to help Primoz Roglic again.