Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) already has seven Grand Tours in his palmares, but even with his extensive experience, the Spanish stage race specialist says that for him this year's Tour de France will be a voyage in the dark.
By bidding to become the first rider since 1998 to win a Giro d'Italia-Tour de France double, Contador has argued that, at 32, he is moving into uncharted waters.
"What worries me the most, because it is totally new, is how my body will recover from those efforts," Contador said in a packed press conference on Thursday. "The Tour route, in terms of its mountains, is the hardest of all the Tours I've done and in the first nine days, there are six stages which are going to be really tough. So staying consistent will be the key.
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"If had to decide between the feelings I had before last year's Tour " - when Contador said he had best sensations ever prior to a Grand Tour - "and this year I'd choose last year. [Last year] I had prepared for the Tour very well and last year I was not so worried about fatigue and how I would recover.
"I have more doubts than last year. My objective is to win the Tour but I am aware that it is very difficult."
Contador's only personal reference point for this double would be in 2011, when he won the Giro d'Italia and finished fifth in the Tour de France despite several crashes and challenging injuries. However, on other occasions Contador has said that he only rode that summer's Tour de France under pressure from his team, and he was not therefore fully prepared to do it. This time, ever since last winter, the goal has been to take both Giro d'Italia and Tour de France.
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