After a five-year blank, Thibaut Pinot will return to the Giro d'Italia in 2023, the Groupama-FDJ team announced Friday.

Pinot last raced the Giro d'Italia in 2018, a heartbreaking finale for the Frenchman. After coming so close to the podium, Pinot was forced to abandon the race due to sudden illness after losing 40 minutes on the second and final stage.

Meanwhile, Gordou seemed to have replaced Pinot as the team's leading rider in the overall classification of the Grand Tour. The 26-year-old is coming off a fourth-place finish in the 2022 Tour de France and is aiming to go one better in 2023.

Pinot said Friday that his goal for the 2023 Giro d'Italia is to at least repeat his 2017 stage win.

In the process, he also hopes to settle some unfinished sports business that apparently remains close to his heart.

"Five years after the fall, it's time for revenge on this mythical track," Pinot said in a press release on the day of the team announcement on Friday. The Giro is my big goal for 2023."

While the 70km individual time trial may dampen hopes of a return to overall contention after the hardships of the past few years, Pinot believes the hard mountain stages, especially in the final week, will be enough to justify the trip.

"I have only one clear goal: to get back to the top. The whole route is very mountainous."

"These difficult giro's will probably be the hardest of the three for the entire season.

Gordou, on the other hand, said he hopes to surpass the results of this year's Tour de France, especially considering that the 2023 route, unlike the Giro, has very few time trials.

"We worked hard as a team and got a great result, but in 2023 we want to go even higher and get on the podium," Gaudou said.

"The 2023 route has an uphill time trial and many mountain stages. It suits me and gives me dreams."

Gaudo said.

While the two major Grand Tours were split between Pinot and Gaudoux, no mention was made of where sprinter Arnaud Demaret would face. The Frenchman's lead-out train was dismantled this offseason, but it remains to be seen if the team can afford to take him to the Tour and sacrifice Gaudot's support.

De Mare currently has 91 wins and has a major goal of reaching triple digits.

"The number 100 wins would be a true dedication, as it would represent the longevity of a rider. In the history of French cycling, only Bernard Hinault, Laurent Jalabert, and Jacques Ancueil have reached this number. Unlike these three great riders, I was able to get there with the same jersey, the Groupama-FDJ jersey," Demaret said.

"This iconic mark is achievable starting this year and I am willing to do everything to achieve it."