Carlos Sastre, Samuel Sanchez and Igor Antón welcome more mountain finishes and fewer time trials
Some of the top Spanish riders have reacted positively to the newly presented 2011 Vuelta a España route, acknowledging that it offers plenty of opportunities for climbers. The six mountaintop finishes and very few time trialling kilometres should mean that many of the local riders will be battling for the overall victory.
“I believe that it is a hard course, and similar to last year,” said Carlos Sastre (Geox-TMC) according to Europa Press. “It is a Vuelta for the climbers. The three organisers are committed to races that are for climbers, which I appreciate.
“Heat marked the beginning of last year’s Vuelta and it may be the same this year,” he explained. “Sierra Nevada is very important and it will leave a strong leader. The Angliru is spectacular, there won’t be many differences at the end, but does have a lot of importance.”
With Geox-TMC missing out on ProTeam status, it will have to rely on invitations to the biggest races of the year. For this reason the 2008 Tour de France winner is not even thinking about riding the 2011 Tour: instead he will be concentrating on the Vuelta, and the amount of time against the clock gives him hope.
“There are two time trials,” he said, “in Benidorm [a team time trial – Ed] and Salamanca, but there is enough terrain to make up time in the mountains.”
Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) sat out is home tour last year but seems set to return in 2011. Like Sastre, the Olympic champion is optimistic that time lost in the time trials can be made up in the mountains.
“There are only 40km against the clock and they come in the second week,” he said to La Marca, “there will be plenty of time to take back two or three minutes [afterwards].”
Sanchez’ Euskaltel-Euskadi teammate Igor Antón was leading the 2010 race until he crashed out on stage 14 to Peña Cabarga. He hopes that will have better luck this time, and is further spurred on by the race’s first visit to the Basque country for 33 years.
“The Vuelta has always been special to me,” he said to esciclismo, “it has given me much of what I am.”
“We will pass through my home, past my people, and that motivates me even more,” he explained. “Also on the route are the mountaintop finishes at Anglirú and Peñacabarga, two mountains that I would love to win.”