Ivan Basso will lead the Cannondale Pro Cycling team at the Giro d'Italia. Elia Viviani has been named the team's sprinter.

Basso won the Giro d'Italia in 2006 and 2010 and this season, he has built his season around the Italian Grand Tour. Basso says he has worked hard in training and the team management just hope that he speaks the truth.

“Basso’s results and preparation were as expected. He focused only on the Giro and we wanted him ready for this race. After two difficult years, this time Ivan followed his program without problems or injuries. He did all he had to do. Now the roads will give the verdict, but not many riders are as tough and determined as Ivan," sport director Stefano Zanatta said in a press release from the team.

Sprinter Elia Viviani will make his debut at the Giro d'Italia. He will try to beat Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-QuickStep), Matt Goss (Orica-GreenEdge) and Roberto Ferrari (Lampre-Merida) in the sprint finishes, but he is mostly there to learn.

"It’s important that he takes his chances and gains experience. We’re confident in him but he’s not under pressure to win. Elia is a young guy with a great talent: he will be free to race without pressure,” Zanatta explained.

Tiziano Dall’Antonia, Paolo Longo Borghini, Alan Marangoni, Fabio Sabatini, Cameron Wurf, Cristiano Salerno and Josè Sarmiento will also be part of the team.

“The Giro d’Italia is such an important race and the team is very motivated,” Zanatta said.

“I think will be a tough race until the very last day and Cannondale Pro Cycling will be able to play an important role. Nibali and Wiggins, as well as their teams: Astana and Sky, will have the pressure of being the favourites. We need to be patient and to be ready to exploit every situation. We know the Giro will be a hard challenge, but we're not ruling out any final result.”