With his victory in today’s mountain time trial, Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank-SunGard) further secured his lead in this year’s Giro d’Italia. The Spanish rider finished the day with his lead over second place Michele Scarponi (Lampre-ISD) extended to 4’58”, and that over third place Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) stretched to 5’45”.
Although he finished 34 seconds clear of Nibali at the finish, Contador was 13 seconds behind the Sicilian, in 13th place, at the first checkpoint after 5.3km. While Nibali had really pushed it on the short descent and the flatter early part of the climb though, it was Contador that pulled away as the steeper gradients kicked in.
“It was clear to me that I had to climb in a progressive way,” Contador told the post-race press conference, “in order to do the best time. The first kilometres were quite hard, until I got a good rhythm and pace. At that point I managed to increase my pace as much as I could.
“For a while I had no reference to the other riders’ times,” he explained, “but then I learned that I was 3 seconds faster than Nibali and I could control the situation much better.
“Now I just need a rest,” he added.
After the riders’ protests about the dangers of the stage forced the race organisers to remove the climb and descent of Monte Crostis, Contador was booed by sections of the crowd as he crossed the line atop Monte Zoncolan on Saturday.
Despite this demonstration from some fans, upset at what they felt had robbed them of the spectacle, he had nothing but support from the massive crowds on the climb to Nevegal.
“Well I must say that I have experienced incredible behaviour from all my supporters in Italy,” said Contador. “Italians have been showing their affection to me from the very first day. Sure, on the Crostis stage there was some confusion, but it was not my fault, and today it was incredible: the public was supporting me like never before.”
With the often-displayed descending skills of Nibali, it was hardly surprising that the Liquigas-Cannondale rider was the fastest over the first section though. As the road reared up though, Contador applied his virtually unrivalled climbing prowess to seize back the initiative.
“Every day you have a chance to climb, and whenever there is a chance I try not to miss it,” he explained. “I’m not worried at this point if my rivals are going to attack; I have a good advantage in terms of time, and I’m sure that they are thinking in terms of trying to win this race, and they will try to take every opportunity to do so.”
Remembering fallen friends
With the death of Wouter Weylandt on stage three, the Giro had already been touched by tragedy, and, while Xavier Tondo was not on the race, his death at the weekend was no less hard felt by the peloton. The grief at losing his friend caused Contador to cancel his rest day press conference, and he showed a great deal of emotion on the podium, pointing toward the sky.
“Certainly I dedicate this stage to Xavi,” he confirmed.
Although Contador has a great many big victories to his name, the manner and circumstances of this latest one make it all the more special.
“As you see,” he said, “winning in the pink jersey – just like at the Tour, wearing the yellow jersey, or at the Vuelta, the leader’s jersey – is quite incredible for me; it’s something I’ll remember all my life.”
Despite being directly asked, Contador refrained from commenting on the recent confession to doping of Tyler Hamilton, and his accusation of Lance Armstrong.
“I’m not the one who is here to give an answer,” said Contador, “we are thinking just about the present and nothing else. I’m thinking about my supporters, who stand on the side of the road waiting for me, whether the weather is hot or cold. That’s what matters.”
Once again, on the subject of Lance Armstrong, Contador was reminded of the comments the American had made in March 2009, when he said: “Great talent, but still a lot to learn.” Contador again refused to be drawn into commenting on his former teammate and adversary though.
“Life is like a story,” said the Spaniard, “every day you learn something new. You find yourself encountering new situations, different circumstances, and from that you learn.”
There was nothing that he could specifically say that he had learned in this Giro though.
“Oh, I don’t know, it’s just great for me to receive calls and messages from my supporters to congratulate me,” he said. “It’s a very tough race, this Giro, as I’ve said. I’m suffering, and yet I’m benefiting from an incredible competition.
Despite the pressures of leadership, the suffering, and the toughness of the course though, Contador insisted that he was enjoying his first Giro d’Italia since he won it in 2008.
“Of course, I enjoy all races,” he confirmed, “whether they are the smallest or the greatest ones. Of course, the landscapes, such as Marmolada or Zoncolan, were wonderful; the fans are incomparable to other occasions, but I enjoy every race.”