He smiles like this, somewhere between mischievous and amused, Alejandro Valverde when they ask him if he will return to Tour de FranceHe smiles amusedly, because he is very intrigued by the fact that he has to continue to push himself, train, run, suffer and win or put in difficulty the boys who now dominate the group, but they could very well be his sonsThe question is whether he'll return to the Tour. He'd already ruled it out last year, but then he got the courage to do so and will now end up reaching Paris. But that question leads to another: whether he'll continue racing. He had already set a deadline: December 2021But now, given how things are going, how much fun he's having, and how much he still manages to make his young rivals suffer, perhaps that term isn't so clear anymore. "I don't know what I'll do yet, I still have to talk to Eusebio and then we'll see.".
One more year
One thing is certain and that is that "I'm enjoying this Tour, the fact of racing without pressure, of being able to take a break and try on other days."
And this, combined with his excellent level and the two victories already achieved this season, the fact that he was again seen together with the best in the Ardennes classics last spring with legs that continue to ask him to fight, they bring him closer to the decision to stay an extra year.
A different story from January. Tired and old as he felt, he had begun what he thought would be his last season, with the signs that the previous one, especially the 2020 Tour and Vuelta, had shown him. his time had passed and he no longer had the pace of the best.
The “Bala” is still there
But Valverde has returned to being the "Bala". The one with eternal talent and a capital class. This is why he took courage and, after Liège, he was convinced that come to this Tour and then continue to Paris. Until the end, putting his experience at the service of Enric Mas in his fight for the podium and after having twice attempted to win a stage by entering a breakaway.
The first time was at Le Grand Bornand, which left him shivering and frozen on the Col de Romme, so much so that he had to stop to get a jacket. He had almost decided, he confesses only now, to get into the team car and abandon the raceThat certain things aren't for him anymore. "But then I thought about my teammates and decided to move on."
One step away from Kuss
The second, last Sunday in La Vella, going from that freezing cold to almost stopping hearts with emotion when, climbing the Collada de Beixalis, He managed to hold off Sepp Kuss's attack at half a minute and arrived within 12 seconds of catching him and playing the stage with the American, nine years after his last victory in Peyragudes. It would have been the fifth of his career: the first in 2005, against Armstrong in Courchevel, followed by two in 2008 in Plumelec and Super Besse. Now that he has won almost everything and stood on almost every podium, from the Grand Tours to the classics to the week-long races, surrendering to a climber of Kuss's level was very different.
«If I had come second in 2008, just to give an example, there would be no person angrier than me – he says – but at 41, the anger passes quickly. And when I arrived, I was happy because I know the best man had won, and it came from my heart to congratulate him. I came in second, but I was as happy as if I had won.».
His 41 years and two months speak for themselves. A lifetime spent doing what he does best: having fun on his bike.
From Paris to Tokyo
With this spirit next Monday he will leave directly from Paris for Tokyo, towards his fourth Olympiad. Because, he says, «it would make no sense to withdraw from the Tour nowWe would have traveled on the same day anyway. We already know that you can't prepare for the Games in six days," he explains, "but the travel schedule would have been the same even if I had withdrawn earlier."
Motivado y con ilusión
The Olympic medal is the final frontier A title to be won by the cyclist with over 120 victories and an everlasting talent. But he doesn't want pressure or burdens. Not at this point, as he has nothing left to prove.
«I'll give it my all to make it happen, but I don't want more pressure than necessary».
He repeats: «We will give everything, but we must be aware that there are rivals who are preparing one hundred percent and that it is not a local race. But I'm still going with good morale and a lot of motivation."
This is the secret of everything for Bala, even in deciding whether or not to continue next year.
“It's more important than physical condition,” he says without hesitation. “You don't always need to have good legs, but you need to be determined. You can only reach your goals if you are motivated and have a dream.». To keep smiling like this, somewhere between mischievous and amused.
