A city is not a city for the mere fact of occupying a territory. A city has its history, its culture, its traditions, its idiosyncrasies, its legends. When NEOM is lifted, that Saudi megaproject that aims to revolutionize everything, they will await pages and blank pages waiting to be filled in. In the first, the name of David Valero, Olympic bronze medalist in Tokyo, will appearnumber one in the world ranking and, as of today, winner of the NEOM Titan Desert Saudi Arabia. “I’m very happy. It has been four days in which we have had everything. I have learned a lot and I have enjoyed the titanic atmosphere”, celebrated the one from Baza (Granada) at the finish line, which was waiting for him. Almost as much as a tyrannical Ariadna Ródenas in the women’s classification, with plenty of victories. “I am very excited. The Titan is a very hard race, very beautiful. Competing for landscapes that almost no one has filmed is a dream”, added the woman from Elche, also a winner in Morocco. The future already has its first kings.
Four stages, four exhibitions. In the case of Ródenas, with an overwhelming domain, above any analysis; in the case of Valero, with a superiority that, without being so visible in the table, was inferred. One does not need to constantly prove that he is the best when he knows that he is. The man from Granada, after an “almost perfect” season, embarked on a unique, different adventure that he wanted. “The moments in the camp, the meals, the joint outings… It has been a beautiful experience for me and for them (the rest of the participants). We are all the same cyclists these four days ”, he valued. I wanted to disconnect and start 2023, the year before the Paris Games, with one more dot. “The rhythm has been what I had in mind. And we have removed four days of cold in Spain! ”, She added. Without forcing, with a pedaling different from the others, with an omnipotent cadence, she has found it. He started as the strongest, a real titan, and he has ratified it.
Julen Zubero, winner of the last stage (his second in NEOM), describes each “shoe shot” as he adds a feeling of astonishment in the peloton. “I had done other races with him, but I didn’t even see him there. Here, with slightly more rolling days, which are going a little better for me, I have known how to move ”, analyzed Haimar Zubeldia, second overall and tied with Valero before the start. “I am clear who is the strongest…”, he had anticipated. After a fall from both (“David has slipped on a small sandbank and I have followed behind”), the world runner-up decided to sentence. He accelerated without looking back, imposing, as if he looked like a motorcycle in the distance, and up to the finish line by Zubero’s hand. “I fell because my bike was gone, but I got up with the adrenaline through the roof and I decided to start, break the race”, revealed Valero.
On the return flight to Barcelona, the man from Granada will travel with a ‘T’ under his arm that cannot do him more honor. Through the window, he will say goodbye to a land that is already a bit his. Surely, he will remember her enraged, plunged into a constant gale, but also pretty, capable of making anyone fall in love with her chameleonic capacity. She has corners for all tastes. A crystalline Red Sea, of many turquoise tones, surrounded by mountains and that allows you to see Egypt on the horizon. A maze of canyons through which, despite the heat, it would be nice to get lost. A brilliant sunset, which blends with the color of the desert. Plains, savannah and valleys. “I am in the best moment of my sports career, by far. I am enjoying a lot after the medal in Tokyo, which gave me peace of mind and confidence in myself”, he said upon arrival. His reign extends. Valero I of NEOM.
Final classification NEOM Titan Desert
1st David Valero (BH-Temple Cafes) – 17:01:28
2nd Haimar Zubeldia (Krypteia) – at 7′
3rd Julen Zubero (Krypteia) – at 18′
4th Josep Betalú (KH7) – at 40′
5th Roberto Bou (Cannondale) – at 52′
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1st Ariadna Rodenas (Kenzasport) – 21:34:52
2nd Michaela Sekulova (SkodaWeLoveCycling) – at 98′
3rd Muriel Bohuet (-) – at 118′
