Declaraciones
Biggest local star to kick off his 2018 season in the new Colombia Oro y Paz race (UCI 2.1), starting on Tuesday.
By the end of this week, all riders of the Movistar men’s team will have made their 2018 debut -except for Mikel Landa, set to start in the Ruta del Sol, and Carlos Betancur, still recovering from his ankle fracture in the 2017 Vuelta a España-. The 23rd member to do so will be Nairo Quintana, who has postponed his first appearance, compared to previous years, to take advantage of the new UCI 2.1 race held in his country, the six-day event Colombia Oro y Paz. These are the reflections by the Blues’ leader –who turned 28 last Sunday– in the eve of his first competition this year:
COLOMBIA ORO Y PAZ
Racing in Colombia
“Competing in my country again is something I’m so happy about. It’s already 24 months since I don’t put a backnumber on here in Colombia, and I’m really excited to be back. We’re all, Colombian riders, really willing to show our country to the world, our fans, how we can set things up for international teams to come here – we’re expecting to do things well and we riders have to play our part and make this race bigger by offering good spectacle.”
Goals
“My main objective here is getting back to good form and getting used to racing into a peloton again – seeing how our rivals are doing and getting those automatisms back working, some things that you do when you’re inside the bunch and which you tend to lose when you spend so many months away from racing. I know that everyone will be looking at me, also cheering on me, and that’s a boost to your morale. Racing at home is the best way to regaining confidence. I wouldn’t change this place for any other one to make my debut.”
Fitness level
“My training here has gone pretty well. I’m building up in a more calm way than in previous years, but I think I’m in good condition heading into this race, so I should be doing well here. There’s also Winner Anacona and my brother Dayer, who have already shown to be in good form, so our plan is to see who of us three can do better and play that strategical point in our favour, with three difference chances. All in all, my intention in this race is to make fans happy and satisfied about this new event.”
Route
“When the race route was planned, many of us asked the Colombian Federation not to make it too hard, since we’re at the start of the season. We could have designed routes with 5,000 meters of elevation gain, but we’re not ready for such hardness at this point of the year. That’s also why the first three stages will be flatter, so we can build some form, and then we will tackle the mountains, especially on Sunday, with the finish in Manizales, which I think will be the crucial point of the race.”
ALL FOCUS ON THE TOUR
“I get more and more experienced every season. We worked differently every year, and we decided to focus all our efforts on the Tour de France this season, and plan our training and racing exclusively on that. It will be very different in 2018, since I won’t be racing the Giro d’Italia, so we will be taking things easier in the first part of the season, so we can save all energy for the Tour de France. For the time being, everything looks great. We’re excited to be taking strong steps towards that goal, that race we haven’t won yet.”
THE STRENGTH OF THE TEAM
“We always did one thing right: working together, as one team. We haven’t been the strongest at times, but we’ve remained on the same page, all of us. If we’re able to keep that spirit, I’m sure we will be up there with the strongest teams and chase many victories. There have been many changes to the roster this season, we’ve even changed our colours – that all makes for an exciting season, starting here in Colombia.”
Eusebio Unzué: “Our initial plan is to have Nairo going back to Europe after the Colombia Oro y Paz, and later race the Volta a Catalunya and the Vuelta al País Vasco. Our intention is to have him also go to check some TDF stages, especially the one with cobblestones, but that’s something we will decide on depending on several other factors, which include the weather conditions at those specific times of the year. This year, Nairo will be focusing his efforts on the Tour de France, and we don’t want him to spend too much energy on other races. We think it’s the time to aim exclusively for the Tour. That’s why his early-season schedule will be shorter than before. We want him to go to those races more relaxed, though he’s an ambitious rider and it will be difficult to stop him if he feels he’s got what it takes to win other races. Our plan remains to have him at his best condition at the Tour de France.”
Pictures: 1) BettiniPhoto.net; 2) El País Cali; 3) Prensa Telefónica Colombia