Thomas won world cycling gold on the track in March

World track cycling champion Geraint Thomas is currently racing in the Giro d'Italia as part of his preparations for the Olympic Games in August.

Thomas, who last year became the first Welshman in 40 years to finish the Tour de France, will compete in the team pursuit in Beijing.

BBC Sport swapped emails with the Barloworld rider on the road.

How's your form, are you confident of getting to Milan?
My form is good at the moment. I am surprised how good I'm feeling to be honest, considering how little road racing I have had this year - my first race was on 9 April. I'm fairly confident I will get to Milan, but anything can happen in a three-week race like this, especially with some of the mountains we have coming up.

There seem to have been plenty of crashes - how are you finding the course?
The course is very challenging, everybody is talking about it being the hardest in years. The crashes are because the race is always nervous, due to the weather or the terrain.

Both Enrico Gasparotto and Mauricio Soler look well placed - what are Barloworld's hopes for these two?
Mauricio is looking better each day after his crash so hopefully he can pull off a good result once in the high mountains. Gaspa is looking good also, but is not going for the general classification. He will be looking for a stage win along with Christian Pfannberger, who is also looking strong.

Barloworld have been very active on the front of the peloton towards the end of the initial stages. Without Robbie Hunter to go for the sprints, what's the reasoning?
It was to keep Gaspa and Mauri [Soler] at the front and out of the chaos in the bunch, especially in the rain. Down in the south of Italy, when it rains, the roads are really dangerous.

Do you (or the team) have any plans to try for a breakaway win yourself?
I had a good go the other day and was in a move for a bit but it wasn't allowed to go. I will get another opportunity at some point and will definitely try to take it. But the work for Mauri and Gaspa is the main priority at the minute.

606: DEBATE Who will win the Giro d'Italia? BBC Sport's Andy Nicolson

Are you thinking about the Olympics at all, or just concentrating on the Giro?
The Giro is a stepping stone to the Olympics for me, but while here, I am 100% concentrated on it and I am not thinking of anything else.

Do the team's tactics take account of your Olympic agenda?
Any sort of work during the race will help me towards the Olympics. So whether I am riding flat out up a climb, or for 100km on the flat, it's all good work for the Games.

Does your GB track coach or British Cycling keep in touch while you're on a big stage race?
Yes, I speak to my coach most of the time, he and the British Cycling boss are out here at the minute.

Do you get to talk to fellow Brits Bradley Wiggins or Mark Cavendish? If so, what sort of things do you discuss?
I talk to them during and after the stages. We are in the same hotel now. We talk about anything from the race, or girls, or politics, or whatever, most of the time just having a laugh.