The Spanish Cycling Federation chose the Vuelta a España’s visit to the city of Murcia to announce a 21-name long list for next month’s World Championships in Melbourne Australia. Murcia was deliberately chosen because as a sponsor of the national team, the city’s name appears on the jersey.
Spain won five out of ten World Championship road races between 1995 and 2004, with Abraham Olano, Oscar Freire and Igor Astarloa.
José Luis De Santos, the Spanish national coach presented the list, saying that: “we had to announce the list by [the Vuelta stage finish in] Burgos, because of the health controls, but we wanted to announce it here at the home of our sponsor.”
After announcing the list he noted that: “Luis Leon [Sanchez (Caisse d'Epargne)] is fixed for the time trial, but the second name will not be decided until the time trial in Peñafiel. This year we had no time trial at the beginning of the Vuelta and so I will wait for the references from Peñafielto decide.”
Three-time World champion Oscar Freire (Rabobank) is the one name fixed on the list for the road race, “but we will wait until the end of the Vuelta for the rest because you can always have an accident.”
“Regarding the current bad form of Freire,” De Santos explained, “we are confident that he will improve as the Vuelta goes on; since the weather is very dry, which is not good for him, in the north he should be better. If he’s not good, he will be the first to say so.”
Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) is the biggest name on the list that is not currently riding the Vuelta. This is because: “he was unable to extend his Tour de France form until the Vuelta,” said De Santos. “He’s following another calendar and if he’s okay, I’ll take him.”
“Perhaps what I said was misinterpreted,” he continued, ”because it’s a World Championships with 3000 metres of climbing in only eleven laps, after some 80km of flat. It isn’t the hardest; perhaps Zolder [2002] and Madrid [2005] were less selective. To make sure that the big sprinters like [Great Britain’s Mark] Cavendish don’t make it we have to make the race tough, which benefit’s Freire.”
One name absent missing from the list is Alejandro Valverde, who earlier in the season was finally suspended for his involvement with Eufamiano Fuentes’ blood-doping ring, which was uncovered by Operacion Puerto.
“We will miss him,” said De Santos, “not only in the race but in all respects, where he created a good atmosphere.”
Spanish men’s long-list for World Championships in Melbourne, Australia:
Javier Moreno (Andalucía-Cajasur), Imanol Erviti, Iván Gutiérrez, Pablo Lastras, Luis Pasamontes, Rubén Plaza, José Joaquín Rojas and Luis León Sánchez (all Caisse D'Epargne), Francisco José Ventoso (Carmioro-NGC), Xavier Tondo (Cervélo Test Team), Koldo Fernández de Larrea, Egoi Martínez and Samuel Sánchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Carlos Barredo (Quick Step), Oscar Freire and Juan Manuel Garate (Rabobank), Juan Antonio Flecha (Team Sky), Joaquim Rodríguez (Katusha), Haimar Zubeldia (RadioShack), Gustavo Cesar Veloso and David García (Xacobeo-Galicia).