Botero ends Colombian climbers myth

LORIENT, France (Reuters) -- Santiago Botero is not your ordinary Colombian rider.

Instead of being a pure climber, the 29-year-old winner of the Tour de France's ninth stage on Monday has become arguably the best time trial specialist in the world.

Not that Botero has a problem with the climbs. Two years ago, the Kelme team leader won the king of the mountains classification on the Tour.

With such references, the first man to beat Lance Armstrong in the time trial discipline for four years, after Monday's 52-km win, looks a serious threat to the American.

But he insists the three time Tour champion remains the favorite for a fourth crown. "Armstrong may not be as strong as he used to be in time trials but for me, he remains the main favorite for overall victory," said Botero, currently lying fifth overall, one minute and 55 seconds behind overall leader Igor Gonzalez Galdeano.

Despite being from a country that has boasted great climbers such as Lucho Herrera or Fabio Parra, Botero has chosen a completely different strategy to Armstrong's in the chase for Tour victory.

While the American seems to have sacrificed some of his time trial skills to improve in the mountains, Botero has worked hard to improve on the flat at the expense of his climbing.

Their clash in the first mountain stages in the Pyrenees this week looks set to be an intriguing one.

"I have not been at my very best in the mountains this season but if I handle the first stage in the Pyrenees well, then anything can happen," Botero warned.

First Colombian

For now, Botero can simply relish being the first Colombian to have won a time trial on the Tour.

In the past, Colombian riders like Alvaro Mejia or Victor-Hugo Pena, winner of a time trial in the 2000 Giro d'Italia, showed that riders from the Andes could also be fast in the plains. But none had achieved what Botero now has.

His win on the roads of Brittany, at an average speed of 50.080 kph, cannot compare with the 53.986 kph reached by Armstrong two years ago in Mulhouse, but it has confirmed his strength in the solitary rides.

Last month Botero beat Armstrong over 41 kms in the Dauphine Libere. He also won both long-distance time trials in the last Tour of Spain before earning a bronze medal at the time trial world championships in Portugal.

"I was full of self confidence today and I was very powerful on the flat," he said.

The Colombian made the Tour his priority this season, training for three months at home in Medellin before resuming competition in Europe in April.

Before the Luxembourg prologue, he had only 16 days of competition behind him and arrived on the Tour fresh.

 

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