As well as its airport, Varese province has a large engineering industry and is within easy reach of Milan.

ECONOMIST: Italian textiles and China

The 34-year-old knows the terrain well around Varese but will have to fend off the challenge of Oscar Freire and his powerful Spanish squad, which includes Vuelta Espana winner Alberto Contador, Olympic champion Samuel Sanchez and UCI ProTour winner Alejandro Valverde.

BBC: Cooke leads GB Worlds challenge