After the Tour won in a big way by Chris Froome, for about a month cycling has been lost in many competitions, even suggestive ones such as the Artic Race or the Giro dei Fiordi or curious ones like the Tour de Pologne which borrowed the Italian Dolomites for flavor a race otherwise condemned to dullness by the local geography. Many races with close to zero competitive value, useful for racking up a few victories for those who had been fasting for some time such as the Norwegian Thor Husvod at the Arctic Race or the British Bradley Wiggins, winner of the time trial in Poland, or to train in view of the commitments end of the season as in the case of Nibali who has the Vuelta de Espana as his first goal, before the World Championship in Florence, which he already won in 2010.
And it is precisely the Vuelta that will begin on Saturday 24 August with a 27 km team time trial-prologue that will bring cycling back into the realm of history that counts. With 11 mountain arrivals, with the Port de Envalira at 2.380 meters the highest peak in the 14 fraction and the terrible Alto de l'Angrilu in the penultimate stage, this year's edition will also hardly reward a runner who does not have the DNA of the climber. Froome won't be there but neither will Contador who won it last year when he returned after his disqualification: a success, ahead of Valverde and Joaquin Rodriguez, which foreshadowed a 2013 season of revenge which in fact did not take place. The disappointing outcome of the Tour – even off the podium – prompted the Iberian champion to pause for reflection on his future, which appears less brilliant than his past. Nairo Quintana, the Colombian grimpeur second in the Tour and fresh winner of the Vuelta Burgos, will also be absent. Nibali, who in the short Spanish stage race appeared to be in full recovery of form after the revelry following his triumphant Giro d'Italia, is in fact one of the great favorites to succeed Contador in the roll of honor of the third major stage competition of the cycling calendar. His opponents for the red jersey sponsored this year for the first time by Carrefour will be old customers like Alejandro Valverde (first in 2009) and Purito Rodriguez always looking for a success in a grand tour, a victory he narrowly missed several times but never achieved not even at home (only third twice in 2012 and 2010). Nibali will lead an Astana that is also strong in Brajkovic and Fuglsang, two companions who will be useful to the Squalo who will have to deal not only with the Spaniards but also with Rigoberto Uran, the Colombian second in the Giro who rides strongly uphill. Among the Italians, who practically appeared at the recent Tour de France deserted by Nibali, there will also be two names of weight in terms of prestige and age such as Ivan Basso and Michele Scarponi. At the last moment, however, an expected rentrée was skipped, that of Alessandro Petacchi, 40 years old on 3 January next, who with 20 victories is the multiple stage winner at the Vuelta, far from the record of 39 successes of Delio Rodriguez, cyclist at the turn of the years 30 and 40, but ahead of famous champions such as Laurent Jalabert, Rik Van Looy (both stopped at 18 hits) and Sean Kelly (16). For the smooth stages - just six - and in particular the individual time trial, even Fabian Cancellara, who disappeared after the great binge of classic spring monuments, is a candidate to carve out a space for himself as a protagonist. It will be necessary to see if the Swiss, who like Froome and Nibali is aiming for the Florentine world championship, will have the will to do all the 41 mountain grands prix scheduled. Speaking of the rainbow jersey, Philippe Gilbert can't wait to get rid of it: since he's been wearing it, that is for almost a calendar year, he hasn't been able to win a race, even in the background.
