Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) starts this Saturday in Florence fifth participation in the Tour de France with the double aim of winning a stage and improving on last year’s sixth place, within a formation that will have the Colombian as leader Santiago Buitrago.
Pello Bilbao (Gernika, 34 years old) He arrived in shape for the Tour after preparing “at home”, ignoring concentrations at altitude.
“I have done the preparation at home, I have verified that the altitude does not benefit me. When I concentrate on the altitude, I have not had better results. Because of that experience I am at home and now in the Tour I hope to be well, ” commented the Basque cyclist, sixth in 2023.
Bilbao warned about the complexity of the start of the Tour, with a “classic” similar to last year in Bilbao, but more demanding.
“It’s an atypical start, we’ve already seen a similar start in Bilbao in 2023, with unevenness and a demanding finish. This year it’s even more, with unevenness and heat. These are the first day and it is an opportunity to strengthen the start race. There are many speculations “The breakaway will be complicated and there will be a brutal battle to build it. The UAE will take the reins of the race to push the engine and try the second day more seriously,” he commented.
The aim of the cyclist Gernikarra is to “take advantage of the opportunities, break away from the stage and fight in the general classification. After the first stages we will see, but I want to play the same tricks.”
Bilbao spoke about the leader of Bahrain, the Colombian Santiago Buitrago.
“Santi is a rider with great potential, but until this year he hasn’t shown stability for a big team. The youngsters are showing that they can lead, and the team expects a lot from him. He has taken responsibility. For him in his debut it will not be easy, but if we save the first 9 days we can go very far,” he concluded.
Source: La Verdad
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