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Valero, a total number one

Valero, a total number one

Until the age of 22 he did not compete seriously. He worked as a mechanic at Ciclos Montoya and didn’t leave to train until six. Sometimes he took advantage of the midday hours. Before, even, he had spent hours in the fields, in the company of his father and his uncle (Agroganadera Hermanos Valero). Yesterday, almost 7,000 kilometers from home, in Saudi Arabia, everything made sense. Amid unanimous applause, of total respect, received the number one trophy in the UCI ranking mountain bike. david valero, a giant (189 centimeters) from Baza, a town of 20,000 inhabitants east of Granada, Serve everyone calmly. He does not reject photos and loses himself in conversations that show the character of an elite athlete, but with the conscience that comes from having lowered his back under the sun. In NEOM, a megaproject that aims to establish itself as a reference for the cities of the future, the Spanish cyclist has completed the best course of his career. This Friday, certifying the first Titan Desert of his record, he placed the last stone of an “almost perfect” 2022 and the first of a key 2023.

“This year, there have been many, many leaders in the ranking, but there hasn’t been one that has been that long”

David Valero, number one in the world

“After the medal (bronze at the Tokyo Olympics), it cost me the start of the season. I set my goal for the World Cup and it helped me. I started to get motivated again, ”he recalls sitting in the rest area of ​​the Titan Camp, in conversation with AS. In Les Gets (France), that goal that allowed him to revitalize his ambition, could only be surpassed by legend Nino Schurter, by nine seconds. In Val di Sole (Italy), also with the Swiss as a wall, he fought until the end for the general of the World Cup. The bottom line? World runner-up, first victory in the World Cup (Snowshoe) for a Spaniard since 2012, seven top-10s in the competition and that number one that became tangible yesterday. Regularity has a prize. “This year, there have been many leaders in the ranking, but there hasn’t been one that has been that long,” he praises. It is not for less.

After success, there are no magic potions or miracles. To reach the Olympic podium, Carlos Coloma, bronze in Rio 2016, prepared a whole motivational arsenal for him; this year, however, he has just let it flow. “He deserved it,” he says in Saudi Arabia, where he has also made his debut on a Titan. In 2020, when Valero had lost “the illusion of shooting”, the man from La Rioja already took out “the claw to continue fighting”. He signed him for BH-Templo Cafés and David made click. A repeating circle. “He has a unique way of taking the pressure off us, of making us disconnect, of creating a family. Hence the results of this 2022, the best year of my sports career by far ”, Valero values.

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Valero, in NEOM with Julen Zubero and Roberto Bou.

From NEOM to Paris

Seeing the man from Granada pedal explains many things. In NEOM, a hitherto unexplored region, it has overcome gusts of wind of up to 45 km/h, it has covered the most arid canyons imaginable and, without altering in the slightest the effort standards programmed to start the preseason, has easily surpassed names like Haimar Zubeldia or Josep Betalú, surrendered to him. “He is a gentleman, with or without a bicycle”, the Basque, second overall, dedicated to him after the man from Baza gave him the stage victory on Thursday; “Don’t come around here much more”, joked the second, the runner with the most Titan (five). “The rhythm has been what I had in mind. And we have removed four days of cold in Spain! ”, Valero joked at the finish line, after confirming his victory, one more boost towards the Paris Games. “Yes, another medal is being pursued”, he does not hesitate to affirm. “There is a year and a half left and we have to take care of everything. It was the purpose of being here. Carlos told me about it and now I’m glad I did it ”, he concludes. A total number one.

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