Peter Sagan (opens in new tab) (Bora-Hansgrohe) will resume his 2020 season Saturday at Strade Bianche (opens in new tab), but downplayed his chances of winning this first race on the heavy schedule.

The three-time world champion will compete in both the Tour de France (opens in new tab) and the Giro d'Italia.

"It will be a short but very intense season in my program. I have to prepare for the Tour and the Giro, so I want to start the season and grow gradually."

"The Strade Bianche is a very tough race, not very long but with some pretty tough climbs. There is a lot of elevation gain and the gravel roads are stressful. It's always a very difficult race. As long as I can be the hero, that's all that matters."

After Strade Bianche, Sagan will remain in Italy to ride Milan-Torino (August 5) and then Milan-San Remo. Despite years of setbacks on the Via Roma (and Lungomare Italo Calvino), this is certainly a classic best suited to Slovakia's characteristics; he has finished in the top 10 seven times, with second places in 2013 and 2017.

"It's a very beautiful and special race," Sagan said in response to a question about whether he loves or hates La Classissima. I've never won Milan-San Remo, but I've always loved it. I created a spectacle for the people and that is the most important thing for me. [Milan-San Remo will be Sagan's only monument in 2020. Although the dates overlap with Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Tour de Flanders, and Paris-Roubaix, Sagan has promised to compete in the Giro d'Italia.

Sagan said he had no regrets about his decision.

"It's like any decision in life," Sagan said.

"I was going to ride the classics [on the original calendar], but I was ready to ride the Giro from the beginning of the year. But you can't have it all in life and this is a special year. I hope that all the scheduled races will take place; one more or one less race won't make a big difference for me."

The 2020 Tour de France closes on September 20, with the Giro Grande Partenza two weeks later on October 3. This short turn means that Sagan will run two Grand Tours in eight weeks.

"I don't think anyone has ever done it with such a short recovery time between two races, so we'll see [what it's like] when we do it," Sagan said.

Sagan will miss the European Championships in Plouay on August 26 and the World Championships in Martigny on September 27. Juraj Sagan told Slovakian publication SME (open in new tab) that it will be "different" from the national team led by his brother.

Peter Sagan last raced Paris-Nice in March. He has been training at altitude for the past few weeks, and his last race before the Tour de France will be the Criterium du Dauphiné (August 12-16).