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Interview with Tour of Romandy winner Alejandro Valverde
By Jarrod Patridge
CT: Firstly, congratulations on your win at the Tour of Romandy. You have been trying to win this race for a number of years now and this year it all came together for you. What was so different this time round compared to previous years?
CT: Firstly, congratulations on your win at the Tour of Romandy. You have been trying to win this race for a number of years now and this year it all came together for you. What was so different this time round compared to previous years?
A: It is true I have been trying to win here in the past because it is a race I like very much. Sometimes I was indeed very close to win. The main problem for me in the past was there were every year two or three stages which took place under very bad weather circumstances. More or less the same happened this year on the occasion of two stages but I have learned to race also when the weather is bad . My victory earlier this year in the Mediterranean Tour showed that already.
CT: I like what you said earlier this year about your amazing achievement in the world classification: "I believe that the fact of leading the world classification is an honour and a dream for any rider"
Is winning that competition your number one priority for 2010?
A: No it is not a priority. First of all because it is not a competition but a yearly ranking which rewards the most regular rider of the year in the races which make part of the World calendar. You win it if you are the most regular rider all through the year. That is why that classification is so important and it is an honour to lead it and more to win it because of its meaning and of course I will be very happy if I win it again.
CT: With the Spanish National Championships scheduled so close to the Tour de France this year does that affect your upcoming priorities and training?
A: Not at all. The National Championships use to be organized the week before the start of the Tour de France. It is a one day race and also not a priority to me. Of course it is something great to win the championship of his own country, for everybody, but in my team many other riders are able to be the best on that special day and if required I will be there to help them and won that title I already won in the past.
CT: There's still a lot on the cycling calendar for 2010, what race is the most important to you this year?
A: Every race is important and I already won several of them this year. Of course the Tour de France is the most important event of the year. Also for me.
CT: Would you be able to name the three things you find you've come to value the most being out on the road and all over the Continent so much of the year?
A: Friendship: I am very lucky because I make part of a team where all riders are friends and we have great fun together. Discovery: you learn to know a lot of people, of landscapes, of different countries and different ways of living. And last but not least my Family, because it is when you are far from home that you realize how much you miss them, how important they are to you.
CT: Stage 10, 2005 Tour de France, Grenoble to Courchevel was astonishing! This win really put you on the map globally. Can you tell us about it?
A: I won many races but maybe this is the most important one. I was taking part in my first Tour de France and that day in the Alps I was able to beat Lance Armstrong himself in a difficult mountain stage. He congratulates me after we crossed the line and that made me really happy. That day I became aware of the fact I was made for that kind of race and that some day may be my turn would come to win the Grande Boucle.
CT: What inspired you to want to become a professional cyclist?
A: Cycling was very popular at home. My father was a cyclist and my uncle too. It is normal I wanted to do like them. I practiced several other sports at school but I was very young when I knew I wanted to be a cyclist. Then came Miguel Indurain’s era and my love for that sport increased even more.
CT: Do you have a mentor for cycling? For life?
A: For cycling: Manuel Lopez who was my first coach when I was a very young rider. Has been very important to me. He taught me almost all I know about cycling. For life: my father.
CT: We enjoyed seeing you ride at the Tour Down Under, can we expect to see you back in OZ for the World Championships in Geelong this year?
A: I hope so. I had a great time in Australia earlier this year and I hope to make part of the Spanish selection which will try to win the world title at the end of the season.
CT: What is your best experience in life to date?
A: The birth of my three sons: Iván, Alejandro and Pablo.
CT: Can you give us some insight to what it's like to be part of a great team like Caisse D'Epargne?
A: It is for sure one of the best team of the world but besides the sporting and professional aspect what is very important is the fact that all the riders which form part of the team, whatever their nationality, become very soon good friends. Everybody feels comfortable and of course once we are on the bike we don’t even have to speak to know what the other ones think. A look is most of the time sufficient.
CT: If you could be any super hero, who would you be and why?
A: I would like to be Batman because I like his batmobile too much!
