Samu relishing Beijing reunion

Samu Sánchez will next week return to the place of his career-defining win in the Olympic road race. The five-day Tour of Beijing commences this coming Wednesday, and the Euskaltel captain is looking forward to the challenge, he told www.fundacioneuskadi.com.

"Being able to go back to where I was crowned Olympic champion means the world to me. It was a very hard race with a testing parcours that ended beautifully. The fight for the medals was intense, and my triumph signalled a 'before' and 'after' in my career. Taking olympic gold is the ultimate achievement in any sport. Needless to say, I'm especially motivated for this race. I'll try to give it my all in this new race on the cycling calendar. Cycling is continuously globalizing: we're doing races in Australia and Canada already, and now China. It's great for the sport that new races are being born all over the world, and these races really enrich the calendar. For me and my team, going to China is very exciting and we'll aim to put on a show for the spectators."

Samu will spearhead a strong team consisting of Nieve, Antón, Astarloza, Landa, J Izagirre, Txurruka and A Pérez. Alvaro González de Galdeano will call the shots from the team car.

Galdeano denies Madariaga-rift

Departing general manager Igor González de Galdeano has denied that a rift with Fundación president Miguel Madariaga is the reason for his leaving. Talking to Basque daily El Correo, Galdeano was keen to put the rumours to bed.

"My decision to leave has got nothing to do with Miguel Madariaga. Let me make it clear: it was a personal decision. Focusing on Madariaga is a big mistake. He's always been there for me 100%. We have a great relationship. We've been working side by side for six years, and I think we go well together. I've got so much to thank Madariaga for. Our relationship will last a life-time."

Galdeano went on to say he's not planning to take a year off next year, but in this moment in time he's not sure what the future holds. He said leaving his job at Euskaltel was no knee-jerk reaction though, having planned it for a year or so. "I started to think about leaving in October last year. I told Madariaga of my intentions prior to this year's Giro, and by the end of the Tour I had made up my mind".

He reiterated that the time-consuming nature of the job is what made him leave, saying he was exhausted. "I'm tired of having no days off. It really is a 365-days a year job. It wears you out. I had to take this decision".

Briefs

• Javier Aramendía looks set to join Caja Rural. The 24-year-old did not get his contract renewed at Euskaltel after four years with the team, and will, according to BiciCiclismo, team up with erstwhile team-mate Aitor Galdós at the Spanish Pro Conti team. The move marks a homecoming of sorts for the Funes, Navarra native, who spent his formative years at Caja Rural's amateur team prior to joining Euskaltel.
• Orbea will today embark on their last race of the season; the Tour d'Empordá. The Conti team will send the following six riders to the French three-stage event according to Euskaltel's homepage: Aberasturi, Sáez, Etxebarria, Bizkarra, Bagües, García.

Euskaltel team structure sum-up

In wake of Igor González de Galdeano's decision to step down from his post as general manager, a whole host of changes have taken place at Euskaltel. Here's a sum-up of who'll do what in 2012:

• Miguel Madariaga will, by his own admission, take over Galdeano's post. He'll also remain president of the Fundación Euskadi.
• Gorka Gerrikagoitia will take charge of the sporting side of things. He's still likely to be in the team car quite a lot as well though.
• According to BiciCiclismo, Iñaki Isasi will retire and become a DS. The team recently revealed he'd signed a new one-year deal with them, so this is obviously a decision taken in the last few days.
• Taking Isasi's spot on the roster will be Orbea rider Adrián Sáez, originally let go by Orbea last week as Euskaltel had no room for another rider. The 25-year-old has had a decent season with the Continental outfit. There was no mention of the length of Sáez's contract.

Galdeano's departure shrouded in mystery

Igor González de Galdeano left Euskaltel for "personal reasons". That's the official version. According to DEIA, that's not necessarily the case.

Sources have told the well-informed Basque daily that the relationship between Galdeano and Fundación head Madariaga is not what it once was. Allegedly, Galdeano was not happy with the way the project was shaping up for the future, neither on an economic nor on a sporting level. This "rift" is supposed to have surfaced before this year's Giro d'Italia way back in May. Madariaga denies any such "rift", but does admit Galdeano's resignation wasn't totally unexpected. "It's something Igor has been talking about for some time", he stated. "After the Tour it became apparent that he would leave. We decided to wait 'till after the Vuelta before making if official. But Igor is still my best friend."

Another source has it that Galdeano was growing tired of continuously having to deal with sponsors that weren't willing to provide the necessary funds. Galdeano was concerned about the future of the team - a "dark" future - and the departures of talented riders like Intxausti and, more recently, Castroviejo. Insufficient funds and support (especially from the Basque government) mean Euskaltel can not compete with the top teams in the sport, and thus the team is forced to let its prized assets leave.

Yet another source claims Galdeano couldn't take the constant pressure that comes with leading a project like Euskaltel any more. The work-load has gotten the better of him. "Only Madariaga can handle this amount of pressure", Galdeano is quoted as saying.

The newspaper goes on to say that he'll likely take a full year off next year before returning with another team in 2013. Miguel Madariaga will take over Galdeano's role in the team as of 1 january 2012.

Galdeano to step down

Euskaltel head Igor González de Galdeano will step down from the post of general manager at the end of the season and leave the team altogether. The surprising news broke earlier this afternoon, and according to the team's website, Galdeano's retirement is due to "personal reasons". Speaking to www.fundacioneuskadi.com, Fundación president Miguel Madariaga seemed taken aback by the news.

"I've had a chat with him, and the only thing I asked of him was to stay 'till the end of the year. Igor will himself explain why he's decided to take this measure when he sees fit," Madariaga, who enjoys a close personal relationship with the former rider, said.

The man himself was keen to highlight that this by no means signals an end to the team or Euskaltel's WorldTour-status, saying:

"This is not the end for this team. I need new challenges in my life, so that's why I've opted to leave. My relationship with Miguel is more than simply a professional one. I guess that's why leaving this project is so hard for me. I've served this team for six years now, and I have complete faith in the directors that have worked by my side to take this project forward. They know the team and the project's value. Miguel still has a great team at his disposal and, of course, he can always count on my support."

De Galdeano will stay in the job 'till the turn of the year. Who'll take his place is yet to be decided, but the team confirmed that they'll make changes to the team's structure (whatever that means) in the near future. Stay tuned for more news.

Samu looks to 2014 Worlds

This year's Worlds parcours didn't suit Samu's characteristics, cue his non-appearance, but the 2014 edition in his home country most surely does. Speaking at the unveiling of Orbea's new range of bikes for 2012 in León yesterday, the affable Asturian was keen to discuss the Ponferrada Worlds with the assembled press. "With it's 3000 metres of elevation gain, it looks like a hard circuit", he told www.leonoticias.com. "The fact that the Worlds will be in Spain obviously motivates me even more. It adds more pressure as well though. But I hope to be there in 2014, as the course really looks to suit me."

As for the rest of the season, Samu is down to do the Tour of Beijing in a week's time. He's also likely to once again challenge in the Giro di Lombardia before taking a well-deserved break.

Duo leave Euskaltel

Javier Aramendía and Daniel Sesma will both leave Euskaltel at the end of the current season, writes El Correo today. The duo's contracts were up for renewal, but Galdeano and co. have opted against it. There was no mention of potential new suitors for either of them at the moment.

Iñaki Isasi and Alan Pérez will get their contracts prolonged though, writes the same paper. The former will thus embark on his 12th season with the team next year, while the latter has been around since 2006.

More news on Euskaltel's roster for 2012 to come in the next few days.

Orbea 2012

As reported earlier, Orbea have signed up five new riders for next season. Four (alternatively six) will stay on, while three have been let go. Here's a sum-up:

• Arrivals: Omar Fraile and Illart Zuazubiskar (Seguros Bilbao), Haritz Orbe (Bidelan-Kirolgi), Carlos Barbero and Igor Merino (Naturgas Energia)
• Departures: Noel Martín, Beñat Urain, Adrián Sáez de Arregi
• Stayers: Jon Aberasturi, Mikel Bizkarra, Aritz Etxebarria, Aritz Bagües

In addition, injured riders Xabier Zabalo and Andoni Blázquez will have a spot on the team if they recover sufficiently. The former's injuries are already well documented. The latter is continuously troubled by his knee.

All new signings are in my opinion quality additions. Orbe has represented Spain several times in big races, while Fraile is one of the biggest talents in the Spanish peloton and has already signed a contract with Euskaltel for 2013 and 2014. Zuazubiskar has shown great progress this year and adds some much-needed time trialling pedigree, while Merino and Barbero are both highly regarded by national coach Dos Santos and will make an impact already next year I reckon. Despite Miguel Madariaga's comments to the contrary, I'm not too worried about the future of Basque cycling when I look at the quality in all three of the Fundación Euskadi's teams as well as talent-factories like Seguros Bilbao and Bidelan.

Orbea reveal acquisitions

BiciCiclismo today writes that Carlos Barbero and Illart Zuazubiskar will join Orbea ahead of the 2012 season. The former has enjoyed another stellar season with Naturgas so it was no big surprise to see the 20-year-old make the jump. The latter - who's posted several top 10s in ITTs this year - comes over from Seguros Bilbao and is the team's last acquisition. In addition to Barbero and Zuazubiskar, Fraile, Merino and Orbe will team up with the Continental team next year.

Orbea will keep hold of Aberasturi, Etxebarria, Bizkarra, Bagües, Zabalo and Blazquez next year, meaning Martín, Sáez and Urain have been let go. Stay tuned for further news.

Duo join Orbea

Naturgas rider Igor Merino and Bidelan-Kirolgi rider Haritz Orbea will ride for Orbea next year, reports BiciCiclismo. 21-year-old Merino has had another solid season with the red squad and was virtually a dead-certainty to make the step up. 20-year-old Orbe shone for Spain in the recent Tour de l'Avenir and will no doubt strengthen the team for the 2012 season.

The team is set to reveal two new faces tomorrow afternoon and, according to BiciCiclismo, one of them will get 'promoted' from Naturgas, while the other will come over from Seguros Bilbao. Stay tuned tomorrow for the latest transfer news.

Briefs

• One-day French Cup-race Tour de Vendée is coming up this Sunday, and Euskaltel will for the third year running send a team. 2009-winner Koldo Fernández will be present, and so too will Landa, Cazaux, Aramendía, Azanza, Isasi, Oroz and Bilbao. Source: Cyclingstartlists.com
• Orbea were active throughout in this weekend's two-stage Tour de Gevaudan. García and Sáez both made their way into the race-deciding 25-man break early on in stage one, but couldn't keep it up and eventually ended up 11th and 30th respectively. Martín, Bizkarra and Bagües came home with a large group some 22 minutes adrift, while Extebarria ended up 35:47 in arrears. The stage went to Guillaume Levarlet. Day two ended with another Levarlet-triumph. Sáez, Martín and Bagües finished 18th, 22nd and 26th at 1:55, while García was 45th, Bizkarra 49th and Etxebarria 57th. On GC, Sáez finished 24th, García 26th, Martín 32nd, Bagües 35th, Bizkarra 46th and Etxebarria 59th. Despite not grabbing any notable results, DS Díaz was happy, telling fundacioneuskadi.com that "we were very close, but just missed out".
• Naturgas Energía ended their season with the three-day Vuelta a Cantabria yesterday. Grijalba's tenth on Saturday was the closest they came to taking what would have been a sensational win in light of the level of competition. Jon Larrinaga was awarded the 'most aggressive rider'-prize overall after being on the attack continuously, while Aitor González - on loan from Debabarrena - finished as top rider in 21st place on GC.

Astarloza honing form on track

Mikel Astarloza has recently taken part in the Spanish National Track Championships. The San Sebastián resident placed a decent fifth in the omnium and was pleased with his performance - especially with a view on what's to come on the road later this season. "It's been excellent training for the upcoming races", he writes on his own webpage. "I'm very happy with my form at the moment. I was fifth in the omnium, so overall I'm pleased. The racing is more intense on the track than on the road, so it's been excellent training in that respect." Astarloza is not down to ride the Tour de Vendée in early October, but is slated for the inaugural Tour of Beijing 5-9 october.

Zabalo recovering; undecided over future

Orbea rider Xabier Zabalo is likely to make a full recovery from injuries sustained in that terrible crash at the Giro della Valle d'Aosta in late August. The 23-year-old was diagnosed with a hematoma, a fractured temporal bone and a broken jaw. Zabalo remembers nothing from the incident, but told El Diario de Navarro that he's glad he doesn't. "I don't remember anything from the accident. Not before or after it either. No one is completely sure how it happened. The team DS saw my bike crushed against the guardrail at the top of a cliff and me lying face-down on the pavement on the opposite side. I actually prefer not to remember anything", he said, adding that he simply feels "lucky to be alive".

After having a clot removed and his face "reconstructed" after several days in the ICU and the operating room, Zabalo says he's now just happy to be healthy. "I think just being alive and healthy will take on a new meaning for me", he said philosophically. "You know there's a risk involved when you ride your bike for a living, but you don't really give it much thought." Whether he'll return to the peloton is still undecided though: "I enjoyed being a professional cyclist and I'll enjoy riding my bike even after this. But I won't go for a ride until I'm 100% recovered. My body will tell me if I should keep riding a bike as a pro. If I have to put an end to my career I won't care too much as my studies mean I have other options in life. Life will go on. Orbea have assured me there's a place for me on the team if I want to continue though. We'll see".