In addition to our army of VeloEyes bringing us images of the races and riders we love, we’re not averse to getting in the mix ourselves and getting our own personal shots of our favourite races. Here Sheree has collated her pictures from last night’s Vuelta team presentations. Enjoy!
Yesterday’s evening’s Vuelta a España team presentation kicked off in sweltering temperatures in the very heart of Pamplona, the Plaza del Castillo, used as a bull-fighting ring until a permanent venue was built in 1844. The only stampede yesterday was for the seats in front of the stage. Not everyone looked hot and bothered, Navarra and Spain’s favourite sporting icon, Miguel Indurain, gave us his thoughts on this year’s Vuelta, looking as cool as a cucumber, in a jacket!
The team presentation was a bit parochial. Not Spanish, no Spanish riders, no contenders then you just entered left, waved briefly and exited right. To be fair the commentators had to respond to the dicatates of an hour-long programme on Spanish television, plus squeeze in highlights from last year’s Vuelta, a quick run-down of this year’s stages and a travel promo for Navarra.
The biggest cheers of the evening were reserved for Alberto Contador who reiterated his pitch-perfect PR press conference from earlier in the day where he downplayed his chances and talked up everyone else’s. He said he’d been scarred by the events of the past two years but had emerged mentally stronger. He also paid tribute to the support of fans, family and friends and said how much he was looking forward to the start in Navarro.
Last up was defending champion Juan Jose Cobo, now riding for Navarran-based Movistar. He’ll be well-supported by Alejandro Valverde, two Basques and, this year’s must-have accessory, a Colombian in the form of Nairo Quintano.
We’ll be back in the Plaza del Castillo this evening for the team time trial.
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