“Technology with soul” would be the motto of Telefónica, which will be 100 years old in 2024, and its president José Luis Álvarez Pallete – extreme thinness of a conscientious runner, deep and dark circles under the eyes of the ultimate person in charge of a company so important, that it is a question of permanent state – repeated with the skill of someone conveying a slogan on stage, even if it doesn't look like it, that of his company's headquarters in the 21st century, which is an anthem the quantum atom in a universe connected without cables, represented by two dancers who are silver bubbles on a stage in front of a huge interactive and hyperactive screen, surrounded by cyclists, maximum representatives of the oldest sport, endurance sports and torturous combat. Added to this is the dividend.
If it's not the soul, then at least the racing heart and the tense muscles, the flesh and the bones. They are Enric Mas, Nairo Quintana, Oier Lazkano, Iván Romeo, each a culture, a sediment, a dream. They all arrive in Madrid after 12 days of concentration in Calp, brightened by a motivational speech on the last day by Juan Carlos Unzue, the former Barça and Sevilla footballer who is battling ALS, the incurable motor neuron disease that is slowly paralyzing his body and him revives spirit, the soul.
It is the presentation of Movistar, the best Spanish cycling team, the only one in the WorldTour, the Cycling Champions League, which only allows 18 teams, which will begin its 14th season in 2024, sponsored by Telefónica.
The cost of running a WorldTour team has increased so much – the latest data from the International Cycling Union (UCI) shows that the total official budget of the 18 teams is 500 million euros, about 28 million on average per team, with the differences being significant There are between the 20 million of the less talented like Astana and the more than 40 of the all-powerful trio UAE, Jumbo (now Visma) and Ineos – with which Eusebio Unzue's team, despite having the best possible sponsor, cannot keep up with the biggest clubs with his Budget. With the desired possibility of a second sponsor far away, the team did not even have the financial means to sign Carlos Rodríguez, the Tour's star of the future, who preferred to continue with Ineos, a setback that was paradoxically good Thing. To make a virtue out of necessity – if we can't sign numbers, we create them – the team has previously reduced the budget, the ambition and the number of specialists – biomechanists, nutritionists, analysts, trainers – in the performance department by up to ten increased marginal, directed by Iván Velasco and Xabier Muriel.
“It is the only worthwhile path, not only to achieve good results, but also to let the young riders we have grow,” explains Iván Velasco, who talks about the great potential of some of the ten new signings of the year for example the Spaniard Pelayo Sánchez and Carlos Canal, or the great step forward that Oier Lazkano continues to make, or the great leap of Iván Romeo, who surprises himself with the capacity of his engine, which is even greater than he believed. “This puts us in the same dynamic as the top teams while ensuring that runners feel more motivated and engaged.”
One of the new coaches is David Barranco, doctor of sports science and professor at the European University of Madrid. “Movistar had the image of a more traditional team in these matters. “With the new group we have taken a small step forward in terms of nutrition, performance analysis, work in the wind tunnel with material, bikes, fabrics, control of small details, minor gains,” explains Barranco, who will be appointed as trainer Nairo Quintana on his return into the team. “Progress in all areas is unstoppable. It never stops spreading news. It's almost impossible to stay current. Aside from the omens, there is so much equality between the runners in a matter of seconds that every little detail matters. “It’s about scraping watts from every possible place.”
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