Spaniard confident in podium battle against Menchov
Samuel Sánchez and his Basque Euskaltel-Euskadi teammates took a well deserved rest day in Pau today. Sánchez hopes to defend himself well in tomorrow’s grueling stage 17 up to the Col du Tourmalet finish and to keep his podium-in-Paris dream alive. The Spaniard ended the only Tour de France he finished so far in seventh place, in 2008 – the year he also became Olympic champion.
The orange team took a leisurely breakfast at 9:30 before heading out for an easy spin that lasted about 90 minutes. After lunch and massages, Sánchez faced the press and admitted that the previous day was quite hard. “The stage into Pau was difficult, but it is now behind us. The important thing is to get to Paris, which is no small feat. In the current situation, I’d be happy to sign for my third place.”
Sánchez had a practical view on his desire to stay in the top three until the race ends on Sunday. “Of course there are differences between second and third, but both get to be in the Champs-Élysées picture.” Sánchez has a strong challenge from fourth-placed Denis Menchov, who is only 13 seconds behind Sánchez. It will be a real mano-a-mano between the two in both the mountain stage and the remaining time trial.
“Menchov is a great cyclist, who has a lot of experience and he has won three Grand Tours. Honestly, I think he is not just eyeing third place, but I have a feeling that Denis wants more.” Many riders are getting more tired now with only four stages to go. “It is noticeable that he [Menchov] is finishing the Tour in great form. Nobody is getting better towards the end, but the secret is to recover from the efforts better than the others.”
Sánchez will hope that the rest day was enough for him to recover well for the Tourmalet. “Tomorrow is a really tough day. The Tourmalet is very hard, it is 16 kilometers [officially 18.6 – ed] of constant climbing.” The peloton will be climbing the Barèges side, coming from the west, as opposed to yesterday, where they climb via La Mongie. Tomorrow’s climb is slightly longer, with a higher average gradient.
Sánchez likes this side of the mountain. “It is a climb that can be done in a rhythm, not like Ax-3-Domaines, which is less steady.” Sánchez expects the group to thin out towards the top. “It will be like a mountain time trial of sorts. The race will dictate the strategy. It is a climb I like, being constant until the top. I hope I have the same feeling tomorrow afternoon,” he said with a smile.
“Then all that we are missing is the time trial,” Sánchez added. “As far as I know it is good for the specialists. That late in the race and with 50 kilometers in length, there will be some good time differences.” Sánchez is not afraid of Menchov. “Three years ago, I made it onto the podium in the final time trial in the Vuelta a España, and I passed [Cadel] Evans.” In fact, Sánchez won that time trial, ahead of … Denis Menchov.
While shorter in length (20km), Sánchez was 12 seconds ahead of Menchov and 19 seconds ahead of Evans. “I have a lot of confidence in my abilities and I’ll manage. The fight will be between great riders – we will see if I have good form and if I can get this third place.”
Should Sánchez be on the final podium, he would make his Basque Country proud. “For us it would be a great prize, something historical and we will fight all the way to achieve this.” The Spaniard rated a fellow countryman as the main favorite, but cautioned that everyone has to reach Paris first. “Without incident or a weakness, Alberto [Contador] has the best chances to win the Tour, but until the last finish line is crossed, nothing is secure.”
The Pyrenees were once again kind to the Spaniards, with many fans clad in orange and/or waving the Ikurriña, the red-green-white flag of the Basque Country. “The support from the fans was spectacular. It was incredible – there was no lack of water at any part of the climb. The people went all out to support everybody, not only us. They are cycling fans, they know all the riders and encourage all of them. It is very emotional and I am very grateful that there are so many fans screaming your name and animate.”