In a normal 2020 cycling season, Vincenzo Nibali would have been racing in northern Sicily today, the day after the Etna summit finish, tackling stage 6 of the Giro d'Italia. Instead, the Trek-Segafredo leader was confined to COVID-19, training indoors and giving interviews.

In an interview with Tuttobiciweb (opens in new tab), Nibali talked about missing the race, the lack of doping tests, and most interestingly, the possibility of competing in Paris-Roubaix this October 25, before giving up his bike He spoke of it in the following words. [The winner of Il Lombardia and Milan-San Remo "is the only race I'm missing in the Monument.

"It's not my forte and I've never raced it because the calendar timing didn't work out, but it might fit. But I'd like to give it a go."

"I've been racing for a while now.

This year, Nibali had his sights set on the Giro, the Vuelta a España, and the Olympic road race before COVID-19 struck. Last week he talked about how much he misses the Giro, but did not set a schedule for his return to cycling.

The overlap of the Giro and Vuelta and the fact that Liège-Bastogne-Liège is during the Italian Grand Tour certainly complicates Nibali's plans. For now, however, he is active for his scheduled return to the sport at Strade Bianche in August.

"Now is not the time to train at full speed. Hopefully I can stay active and start again for my return," he said.

"I miss the challenge. Sometimes I simulate races, full climbs, etc.," he added, doing a virtual Milan-San Remo race and signing up for the "Challenge of Stars eSports" virtual race on the Bkool platform.

"The other day I took on a hard climb of over 15% with Diego Ulissi, neither of us wanted to stay behind. When we got to the top we were blue."

The Italian and Spanish cyclists were, until very recently, confined to their homes. Romain Bardet, Thibaut Pinot, and Tom Dumoulin said they had not been examined in months.

However, Nibali says he trusts his fellow professionals and tries to think the best of them.

"I'm honest. I trust my fellow professionals, and I like to think we're all honest. We've all changed cycling for the better. I like to think we're all good people. Then again, as they say, the mother of fools is always pregnant."

Testing, like racing, will return to normal at some point. But for now, Nibali - like many others - remains on lockdown. But he is busy enough, waiting to return to do what he does best.

"I've taken everything apart and reassembled everything in the house and in the garage. There is nothing to take apart and reassemble now. I'm calm enough now."