Italy's athletes will converge on Imola, hoping home advantage will give them an edge in the elite men's and women's road race world championships.

Italy will likely have a medal for Filippo Ganna in the men's time trial on Friday, while memories of Vittorio Adorni's world title in Imola in 1968 evoke nostalgia for when Italy was one of cycling's dominant nations, and further heightened expectations of success.

However, Italy has not won a world title in elite men's road racing since Alessandro Baran's solo victory in Varese; Paolo Bettini won back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007, and Mario Cipollini won the 2002 Zolder Motor Racing Circuit, but in the 12 years since, he has never been discouraged from a podium finish, most recently by Matteo Trentin, who lost in a sprint to Mats Pedersen in Yorkshire last year.

National coach Davide Cassani has now selected a national team of 13. They have won European titles with Elia Viviani, Trentin, and this year with Giacomo Nizzolo, but they are far from the rainbow jersey.

Vincenzo Nibali is the team leader in Imola, but his form and ability to be competitive against Tour de France winners such as Tadej Pogachar and Belgium's Wout Van Aert have raised serious He has doubts.

Cassani hopes that Diego Ulissi, Damiano Caruso, and 21-year-old newcomer Andrea Bagioli, who has two wins with Deceuninck-Quick Step, can step up if Nibali falters.

Fausto Masnada, Gianluca Brambilla, veteran Giovanni Visconti, and 2019 Tour of Flanders winner Alberto Bettiol will also make up the eight-rider field. The two reserves are Matteo Fabbro and Nicola Conti. Davide Formolo is out after breaking his collarbone in the Tour de France, and Giulio Ciccone is recovering from the COVID-19 virus.

The Italian men's team did three laps of the 28-km circuit on Wednesday to test their bikes and gear up for parcours.

"They were able to recognize how hard the circuit is," Cassani told Tuttobici after the ride.

The steep climbs and country roads reminded Alberto Bettiol of racing in Belgium.

"It's interesting ...... There were few chances to recover on the circuit, except for a section through Riolo Terme and the last two kilometers of the motor racing circuit. The Galisterna climb (1.3 km, average 10.9%) reminds one of the steep hills of Flanders.

"There's nowhere to catch your breath," said Bazioli. My legs hurt after every lap. Where is the best place to attack?"

In 1968, 300,000 spectators packed the Imola circuit and the Tre Monti climb to watch Adorni win. Cassani, who was 7 years old at the time, saw the race and his passion for cycling was ignited. He has since raced professionally, first as a television commentator and now as a national coach in the sport.

Cassani hopes that the Italian national anthem will once again echo through the Imola circuit, but is aware that Italy faces a steeper climb than the short climb of the Imola circuit.

"The race is very hard, with very few flat roads and 550 meters of elevation every lap.

"The climbs are not long, but the second one is challenging, especially the steep 1,300 meters. Riders like Julien Alaphilippe, Jakob Fuglsang, and Wout Van Aert will be the favorites to win.

"2020 was a tough year for everyone with the COVID-19 pandemic. Hopefully it won't happen again.

"I had hoped for a better approach, but Davide Formolo broke his collarbone and Ciccone developed COVID-19.