“The illusion and the desire continue, they do not go away suddenly”
BARCELONA, 20 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Spanish cyclist Alejandro Valverde (Movistar Team) faces this 2022, the year of his retirement as a professional after a long and successful career, with enthusiasm and desire and with the will to enjoy each race without thinking yet that it will be his ‘last bullet ‘.
“The illusion is still there, and being motivated and focused and thinking that I can do it, the desire does not go away from one day to the next, all of a sudden. I am very excited, it is a bit hard to assimilate that it is the last year but it remains a lot ahead and I’m not thinking about retiring yet. I’m going to enjoy everything one hundred percent”, he assured the media after the presentation of the Movistar Team 2022.
Valverde, in his last season as a professional after three decades as a reference and leader of Movistar, will face Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España in a “very nice” calendar. “By not doing the Tour, we have time to do well in both places. And about finishing in the World Championship, I don’t know, but if everything goes well it would be nice to run it,” he acknowledged.
“I would like to be remembered as a great cyclist who gave everything for this sport and who has enjoyed the sport a lot, and made people enjoy it. I want to retire grateful, and I want health to accompany me and not injuries. I dream of that , I would be super happy to retire with the public, after the beautiful career that this sport has dedicated to me”, he was honest.
And it is clear that this time there will not be one more year of extension. “No, no, it’s going to be my last year, there’s no need to go any further at 42 years old, even if I’m in good shape. My cycle is already sufficiently completed, and then I’ll dedicate myself to other things. It’s not all about competing in this life, but always linked to this team, to my family. But continuing to run doesn’t make sense,” he said.
Quite the opposite happened in 2021, when he felt the need to continue to say goodbye to the public at the races. “I felt good, the sensations were still good and we decided to continue for another year and be with the public, the one that always surrounds you and gives you energy and strength. It was a shame to retire without an audience, I hope to have another normal year and enjoy it one hundred percent in every race that goes”, he reiterated.