James Piccoli wins San Dimas ITT but junior goes faster than all the elites

Fresh off second overall at the Tour of Taiwan, James Piccoli (Elevate-KHS) won the men’s elite individual time trial on Stage 1 of the San Dimas Stage Race on Friday. The course was just 6.8-km long but entirely uphill. Piccoli posted a time of 15:01 topping the men’s field. He didn’t, however, set the fastest time on the day. That honour went to 17-year-old junior Matthew Ricittello (Lux Cycling) who covered the course in 14:33.

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Yellow Jersey for Piccoli on stage one of @sdsrace ! James won the GMR uphill time trial and is in the lead by 3 seconds heading into Saturday’s 85 mile road race! PC: @dmunsonphoto @khsbicycles @maxxisbike @jlvelo @xpedousa @serfas_inc @fsa_road @vision_tech_usa @bontcycling @musclemonster @kaliprotectives @amphuman @boneshaker_project @chamoisbuttr @4iiiicom @parktoolblue @velosaddles #monsterhydro #khsbicycles #elevatekhs #switchtoxpedo #poweredby4iiii

A post shared by Elevate Webiplex Pro Cycling (@elevatewebiplexpro) on Mar 29, 2019 at 4:31pm PDT

Piccoli was fresh off winning a stage in Taiwan where he battled with Floyd’s Pro Cycling veteran Jonathan Clarke for the overall win. The 27-year-old from Montreal has been pro with Elevate-KHS for three years and is very strong in time trials and on climbs. That makes Ricittello’s result, who is 10-years younger than Piccoli, a real stand out performance.

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San Dimas Stage Race – Day 1: Individual Time Trial: Team 1st in GC for JM 17-18 with the help of @matthewriccitello as he dominates with a time of 14:34, beating the pro field by almost 30 seconds. Stay tuned for the road race results. ? ? ? @dmunsonphoto @iamspecialized @castellicycling @hedwheels @sideshowcollectibles @oakley @parktoolblue @seasucker @bonk_breaker @veltoze @arundelbike @defeet luxcycling.com

A post shared by LUX Development Cycling Team (@luxcycling) on Mar 30, 2019 at 8:52am PDT

Ricittello is from Tucson, Arizona and has already racked up some impressive results. He was second in the junior U.S. nationals time trial last year and won three stages and the overall at the Cat 3 Tour of the Gila in 2018. He’s also won the San Dimas Stage Race and Valley of the Sun Stage Race in the junior 15-16 category back to back in 2017 and 2018. He is the son of former professional triathlete Jimmy Riccitello who now runs a coaching business out of Tucson.

On the races second stage, Piccoli’s teammate Ulises Castillo Soto took the stage win and moved into the race lead. Ricittello remained in the race lead in the junior 17-18 category with one stage on Sunday remaining.