Itt a teljes interjú:
In my last season, I want to enjoy cycling
Chechu Rubiera, veteran of the Asturian peloton, is taking part in his first race in Australia, the Tour Down Under, starting January 21.
elcomerciogital.com writes, This will be a very special season. It's the final one after thirteen years as a professional of the peloton. He'll be leaving behind his victories in the Giro d'Italia, with the Kelme green and white jersey, and his team victories in the Tour alongside the mythical Lance Armstrong.
The most important thing for Chechu Rubiera is «to enjoy cycling, which means to compete without any kind of pressure, without trying to get results at any cost, but if I do get any, it will be great ». Now he is packing his suitcases for his departure next Monday for Australia, with the enthusiasm of his early days.
Of course, he knows that «at this point, I don’t have anything to prove as a cyclist, I think I've given everything to cycling, and now is not the time to set myself any huge objectives».
The Gijón rider will compete in a number of races before his seventh Giro d’Italia in May : «It seems like too many races, but in fact it amounts to about the same number of days I have raced at the beginning of the season every year, so I'm not worried.»
The first one to go
Rubiera will the the first Asturian rider to go this year when he takes part in the Tour Down Under. After this stage race, in which Carlos Barredo successfully competed in previous years, Chechu will take part in the Tour of California from 17th to 24th February.
Then, he will ride in the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon and the Vuelta a Murcia. And before the Giro, he will be competing in the Tour of Georgia in the US, and the Circuit de la Sarthe or the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, depending on what the team management decides.
In the Giro, (Janez) Brajkovic will probably be the team leader: «I like the race, but have to wait and see in what shape I am when I get there. Hopefully (I'll be) well. »
«Worst of all is travelling», says Chechu, «that’s why I am pleased not to go to Kazakhstan for the team presentation, as it has been cancelled».
As things stand, the Astana rider will almost go around the world in the first part of the year, «it does not bother me too much because I know it’s my last season ». He doesn't know yet if he will compete in the Vuelta a España, «because it depends on how the first races turn out».
On the other hand, he is very concerned with the problems cycling is experiencing because of doping, which «has left many cyclists unemployed and, in many cases, the attacks we suffer are not justified».
In this respect, he is sorry for fellow cyclists like «Santi Pérez, De Sarraga, and Santamarta, who have not found a team yet after the disappearance of Relax, the team had a number of Asturian (riders)».
Chechu Rubiera will feel at home within Astana, where he will have Bruyneel as manager, and Benjamin Noval as teammate, as well as Dani Navarro, who will be with him at the Giro d'Italia.
Photograph by P. Nosti, el Comerico
