As the beginning of his Giro d'Italia-Tour de France adventure looms large, Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) says that he’s in the right place both physically and mentally for the feat that lays ahead of him. He has had a consistent but unspectacular start to the year with a single victory at the Ruta del Sol in February to his name.
While Contador admits that his preparation hasn’t been perfect, he knows that his early season goals had to take a back seat in light of what he would face in the middle part of this season.
“I am physically ready for the Giro and psychologically prepared for what awaits me after the Giro,” Contador said in an interview with Spanish newspaper AS. “I know that I risked the beginning of the season for the challenge of the Giro and the Tour. At the same time this has the attraction that some people see it as impossible, which motivates me greatly.”
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Contador’s rival Richie Porte (Team Sky) has had a much more fruitful start to the season with three stage race victories in the build-up to the Giro d’Italia, but the Spaniard is not worried. “He's been amazing from the Tour Down Under… He looks very motivated, he knows he has a great opportunity to fight for the general classification, and he will be a tough opponent. We'll have to see how it is but my level in the Giro will be very different.”
Contador is aiming to be the first rider to win the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France in a single season since Marco Pantani in 1998. He previously attempted the same double in 2011. His season got off to a flyer, and he already had six wins in the bag by the time he reached Italy before taking a convincing Giro victory, albeit one that would later be taken off him when he was handed a two-year retro-active ban for his positive test for clenbuterol at the 2010 Tour.
The 2011 Tour de France didn’t go as planned though, after he lost time in a crash during the first week and looked lacklustre in the mountains. This year has been a much more measured approach and Contador is happy with how he’s progressed but, perhaps, would have liked more success. “I would have liked to have better results, but the form itself was scheduled,” he explained.
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