Astana Cycling Team

Alberto Contador and the Audi A6 2.7D with which he has traveled to Liege

Alberto Contador arrived today around 15:00 hours at the hotel that his team booked for the week of the Ardennes classics, after a long journey by car of almost 24 hours and 1900 kms between Santiago de Compostela, where yesterday won his third Tour of Castilla and León, and the Belgian city of Liege.

Contador traveled with teammate Benjamin Noval. On Sunday, after the fifth and final stage of the Tour of Castilla and Leon and the corresponding awards ceremony, Astana riders nominated to run the Fleche Wallonne and Liege, embarked around 16:30 on the journey toward Pau, where today morning the had to take the high-speed train to Paris.

During the trip, however, Contador and Noval preferred the alternative to train and continue by car, since it seemed more direct and comfortable. While Pereiro, Jufré and Stangelj continued with the original plan, the first two slept in Poitiers after an initial phase of 1,200 kilometers, and this morning, after 7 hours of sleep, did the rest of the trip to Liege, where they arrived around 15:00 hours, after nearly 24 hours of travel.

Alberto, after a light lunch, spent the rest of the afternoon to do a gentle workout, but took the opportunity to come to recognize a small portion of the course of Liege-Bastogne-Liege in the company of some ccycloturists, with whom he made 30 kilometers. Noval preferred rode on the roller, waiting for tomorrow, when the whole team will made the recognition of the latter part of the Flèche Wallonne.

“It has been a hard journey”, said Contador, “but we have done it relatively comfortable and fast. At the end we were right not to take the train because there it was really full of people, as our teammates have told us. Was not an advantage”.

Last Sunday, during the last stage of the Tour of Castilla and Leon

(Automatic translation. Forgive inaccuracies).

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Jacinto Vidarte
Jefe de Prensa / Press Officer