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So not all news is good news and I'm sad to read an interview with Oscar Pereiro. He says he's totally lost motivation and that quitting during the Tour made him hate the sport he's always loved. This follows the news and rumours that have been circulating that he's considering retiring.
I will be very sad if he does. Speaking to AS.com he says "I have nothing to hide. My contract with Caisse D''Epargne is up and I have three options: renew, a change of scenery (different team i think he means?) or quit...retire. If I can't find the motivation to pursue or the desire I'll contemplate the latter. If it is not the case I'll leave."
Oscar who has been spending time with his family since abandoning on Stage 8 in this year's Tour, says he has not felt this way since 2000. He made his comeback from the horrible crash in 2008 at the Tour Down Under, talking about his comeback.. "I worked a lot since January and I got to go to the tour, but when I got there I didn't have it in the legs. At the start I was going to try to get into the breaks to win a stage, but I saw immediately in Monaco that I was not going well," speaking of quitting he says, "It was not easy to get off the bike, but then I was disgusted, and did not want to know anything about the bike since."
He admits he's finding it hard to be excited about the bike, about riding and that is why he won't dispute the Vuelta, he can't offer the team what they need and it's not respectful to Unzue and the other riders.
Talking about that and what he'll do from now, he says "It depends on me. I am sincere and I do not want to mislead anyone. If I get paid to return to my job and the team make the investment in me, I need to deliver and perform. Eusebio Unzué (director of Caisse D''Epargne) and I want me to recover properly . If I can be at my level, if I can be important for the team, but if not I'd prefer not to continue," said Oscar.
For now he'll continue taking time off, trying to find motivation and spending time with his family. He does, however, seem to keen for Contador to join the Spanish team though, saying "Contador is a great person and rider and Caisse D''Epargne deserves a rider like him. The group and the atmosphere is great and he'd find the conditions perfect for a rider at his level," said Oscar.
Other leavers on the Caisse d'Epargne roster? Well as I reported yesterday Rodriguez is joining Katusha, Charteau is also leaving and Nicolas Portal is still having problems. I blogged about his heart condition a while back and it seems that he may not be able to carry on riding and may have to retire.
It seems the other riders whose contracts are up will all resign or already under negotiations. So far Caisse d'Epargne have signed Moreau and Bruseghin. They are being linked to Contador, Soler (Barloworld) & Sitsou (Columbia). Interesting rumours for sure.
The photo of Oscar below is one of my favourites, credit to AP i think. It's him with his 2006 Tour trophy :)
Spaniards-Valverde-All Things Cycling
Description :
Welcome, I should probably start explaining my game. I am a cycling obsessive, i follow all kinds of races and riders but of course become biased for teams/riders. As much as my blog may sometimes seem to point otherwise, I do have a good knowledge of cycling and can hold my own in a debate, but I chose to approach the more humerous side of it, and have no qualms admitting I'm also a fangirl. I'm female, it's hard to not notice that these guys are often good looking muscular guys in tight clothing with pretty bikes. So be warned.
I have my favourite riders which as it stands (for better or worse) are Valverde, Pereiro, the Schlecks, LL Sanchez, Contador, Sammy Sanchez and most Spaniards, Bennati, Boonen, Taylor Phinney, Eisel, Lovkvist, Wiggins, Rogers, Hincapie, DZ, many of the Garmin boys, Cancellara, Lequatre, Fleeman, Millar, Kenny, JA Flecha, Basso, Capecchi, De la Fuente, etc etc. The favourites tend to crop up lots if you need a more in-depth list.
I welcome all, but apologise for my lack of languages. I only speak English and very poor German, but welcome everyone :]
I twitter- Lucky_you33
I also have facebook/msn, just ask.
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Helsy3322 ans
Cleethorpes/Leicester
Royaume-Uni
Cleethorpes/Leicester
Royaume-Uni
sansen, Posté le mardi 11 août 2009 18:41
My brain cannot compute Alejandro without Oscar and vice versa.