Sixday of Milan back with Basso

The Sei Giorni di Milano, the Milan Sixday is back on the UCI track calendar. As the Gazzetta dello Sport reported Thursday, the prestigious track cycling event, which had not been carried out these last nine years, will again be held next autumn, from November 4-9, in the glass-and-steel Milano-Rho Fiera venue, at the same time than the EICMA bike show.

What's more, the list of participants is already impressive: Road World Champion Paolo Bettini will team up with Sixday specialist Marco Villa, Italian Super-sprinter Alessandro Petacchi pairs with his veteran team-mate and Sixday fan Erik Zabel, and Spring Classics contenders Filippo Pozzato and Alessandro Ballan have also already agreed to attend. On top of this already high-class field, another rider will be making his come-back: Ivan Basso, whose suspension for attempted doping within the Operación Puerto affair ends October 24.

Last winter, race organisers succeeded their bid of the 'Bike4Show', a four-day track racing event, also held at the same time than the famous bike show. The initiative of reviving the Sixday event was taken by former Olympic and World champion Silvio Martinello. The track used will be short: only 166 metres as opposed to 250 metres last year. This, organisers hope, will add to the spectacle.