Joseba Beloki (Brioches La Boulangère)

Following the Vuelta presentation, Joseba Beloki headed back to France and to Nantes to join his new team-mates of Brioches La Boulangère. The team’s official presentation is on the 6th of January 2004 and there will be one big difference from 2003.

Not only will the team have new Basque riders they will also be in new colours. For the moment the team are training on all white bicycles for the red colours that were a commentator’s nightmare in races were they rode against Saeco will be changed.

So new colours, and new riders. And what does Beloki make of it all? The excellent Velo101 website caught up with him in Nantes and asked him a few questions – please visit the site to read the full interview.

Courtesy ONCE-Eroski

Firstly, welcome to France! How is your French coming along?

"Oh, very badly! I have not really started to learn seriously because at the first training camp I had a few physical problems. So for the minute, French remains difficult for me. No matter, I hope by July I will be pretty fluent, certainly during the Tour everything will be organised."

"So far I have looked at a few books, but perhaps my best help will come from the wife of a friend. She comes from Rochelle and now lives in Vitoria. I think her help, might be the best way to learn the language."

"Nada! Nada! I can’t say anything. I’m not going to risk saying anything. Euh... next question!"

"I always had a good knowledge of France, mainly through sport and I’ve always done pretty well here. I always say that France is a country which has it all. Each part of France has its own charms: the Riviera, Brittany, the Alps, the Pyrenees... France has a variety of landscapes and I would like to get to know it as a tourist when I take my retirement from cycling."

"No, because I am very happy where I live (in Vitoria). Unless it was necessary I don’t think I would move."

"I believe that it is a team who have had an important change of outlook. I think that now they are trying to win the Tour we will see a new spirit within the team that will develop over the next two of three years. I hope that every thing goes well and these changes occur quickly.”

"To tell the truth, not really, because I was only with them for five days at the first training camp. I already know certain riders a little, like Didier Rous and Jérôme Pineau, but I think with this training camp and the next one, we will get to know each other better. I hope to be a real team member as quickly as possible.”

"Well, it's fair to say that Manolo Saiz was like my sporting father. He is the person who introduced me into the world of cycling. As for Jean-Rene, I don’t know him yet but from the little I saw of him when we were negotiating, he is a straightforward person. Somebody who knows what he wants for his team and in particular he has very clear ideas. And I like that a lot."

"Putting aside the fact that he is my brother, Gorka Beloki is a lad who rode with me at the ONCE for the last two seasons. He is a rider who is used to working hard, particularly in the first few kilometres of a race.The ONCE team gave its riders many responsibilities and often Gorka’s role was at the start of the races.It’s not surprising then that you would not see him at the end of the race.

"Unaï Yus is a rider you can trust. I have been riding with him since I was nine years old and he has experience of riding for a foreign team. Since turning professional he has ridden in Portugal and I think he is a very strong rider, particularly in day races and 5 day stage races."

"Ah well, I think it is a very complex parcours. A parcours with many dangers. I think the last week will be the one that causes the most damage. That will be the time, during the last week, that all the team will have to pull together."

"Win the Tour? To this day I still don’t know whether I can win it. I will try to. In the history of cycling very few riders have had the ability to win the Tour, and I would like to become one of those. I would prefer to be quiet about this. If one day, I do win the Tour then I will be able to speak about how I won it and what happened."

"You want to talk about my crash?"

"Ah well, I don’t know. The important thing is that I always said that to beat Armstrong you must attack him, and if you don’t attack him he will beat you in the time trials. The problem is that if you want to attack Armstrong, you must have the strength to do it. In previous years, I did not attack it because I did not have this strength. But this year, I had it. I took risks. I believed that I was better than ever. All was well. What would it have happened had I not crashed? I do not know. No. I do not know."

"Well, I fell because I had a problem with the rear wheel. The weather was very hot, the tyre was also hot. And then while slowing down, the wheel locked and I skidded. Of course, it was not a motor bike. I am not Valentino Rossi and I crashed."

"No. Today, all is very well. I had another operation last Tuesday which finally removed all the pins in my arm; that's why I couldn’t make the training camp any earlier – but I have found the mobility in my arm again. It is phenomenal. Here (he draws a broad circle on his right thigh), I have a titanium plate with five screws which will stay there for life. Medically, I will not have any more any problems. It was guaranteed to me."

"Yes, I want to take part the Classics of the World cup, and in particular Liege-Bastogne-Liege. I would like to win a Classic. You can be sure that I would like that. But considering the principal aim of the season is the Tour and then the Vuelta, it would be difficult to win a race before the Tour from a physical point of view. But I want to take part in the top races."

Courtesy ONCE-Eroski

"Jean-Rene Bernaudeau and I were at the presentation, in Madrid. It is a very very very hard course but I believe that it will be decided in the time trials , so I think I could do very well. That motivates me to try for the Tour and the Vuelta in the same year."

"Yes. Some riders start the season very strong. They want to do well in April, they want to do well in May, and they do well in the Tour. But after July they are dead. The most important thing is to start the season slowly and arrive at the Tour in good shape.

"2004 is very special because there are also the Olympics and the World Championships in Vérone, which makes things very hard. At the end of the day I think if I can reach top form by the end of June I will be able to keep it till the end of the season."

"I hope everything goes well with Liberty Seguros. I would have preferred to stay with them, but it was not possible. Now I am riding for a new team I have absolutely “no comment”.

"All these changes, these new sponsors, that’s great! The sport needs them. It makes little difference if the team is new or old. The important thing is to have teams. Banesto have found a new sponsor, Manolo is always looking for a co sponsor, but I think that new teams are always good news for the riders.”

"Thats good. I would expect that. Paolo Bettini won the Coupe du Monde and is the world classed number one. I send him all my félicitations."

"My only present would be to start the Tour of France in the same form I had this year. I would be happy with that. Then we will see what will happen."

Courtesy ONCE-Eroski

Joseba Beloki Palmares

2003
2nd Bicicleta Vasca
5th Stage Bicicleta Vasca/Euskal Bizikleta
1st Clásica de Alcobendas
3rd Stage Clásica de Alcobendas ITT (9.7 Kms.)

2002
5th Stage Bicicleta Vasca/Euskal Bizikleta
1st Escalada a Montjuïc
2nd Tour de Francia
3rd General Vuelta a Asturias
3rd GP. de Karlsruhe (Alemania)
3rd General Vuelta a España

2001
4th and 8th Stage Volta a Catalunya
1st General Volta a Catalunya
2nd General Bicicleta Vasca/Euskal Bizikleta
2nd Escalada a Montjuïc
3rd General Tour de Francia

2000
3rd Stage Tour de Romandía
5th Stage Vuelta a Asturias
1st General Vuelta a Asturias
1st Criterium de Zaragoza
1st Memorial Jacinto González de Heredia (Vitoria-Gasteiz)
3rd General Tour de Francia

1999
3rd Campeonato de España
4th General Dauphine Libere
4th General Volta a Catalunya

1998
5th General Tour del Porvenir