Who is . . . Rinaldo Nocentini?

Nocentini's climbing abilities earned him a spot on last year's Italian national team

Rinaldo Nocentini finished second to Davide Rebellin this past weekend at the Paris-Nice stage race by a scant three seconds. He showed his climbing and decending skills while racing against some of the world's best, and finished second overall on the 2008 Paris-Nice classification. And while he didn't take the overall title, his performance begs the question: who is Rinaldo Nocentini?

Nocentini has won a few races, but is largely a wild card

A 30 year old veteran riding for the French AG2r team, Nocentini has ridden mostly for Italian teams, including the powerhouse Mapei and Fassa Bortolo outfits in the early 2000's, and also with the continental Formaggi Pinzolo Fiavé and Acqua & Sapone squads. A promising junior rider, Nocentini finished 3rd in the 1995 U-19 road race and 2nd in the 1998 U-23 road championship. Nocentini has a good burst on short climbs, and good endurance in longer races.

Riding for his first pro team, the mighty Mapei team, which today is known as Quick Step

Nocentini's palmares include a stage win in the Med Tour and victories in both the 2007 GP Miguel Indurain and the 2008 Gran Premio di Lugano. He also placed sixth in last year's Fleche Wallone (also won by Davide Rebellin), showing that he has the power to hang with the world's best in the hilly classics. Nocentini is a rider that is never mentioned as a favorite, but when on form can be as good as anyone else.

Winning for AG2R last year at the GP Miguel Indurain

The rest of the year is sure to be a crap shoot for the Italian veteran. He'll have his chances in various races, but not until his team leaders have been removed from the picture. He'll also probably get a ride on the Italian national team for the 2008 world championships, as his climbing skill will be of great use to Paolo Bettini, who is attempting to become the only rider ever to win three world championships in a row.