David Valero sees the World Cup as a great challenge

The Granada native David Valero has stated that his great challenge for the future is conquer the mountain bike world championship in the mode of marathonthe only major title that eludes him in a season in which he has won the Spanish Championship, the European Championship and the World Cup of this discipline.

Valero, 37 years old and who has been competing in the mountain bike marathon (XCM) for just a few months after taking a step back from Olympic cross country (XCO), has found new motivation in this modality.

“I decided to take a step back from cross country and enjoy cycling in a different way,” explained the bronze medalist cyclist at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on the occasion of his presence in Quesada (Jaén) at the Military Mountain Bike World Championship.

The Spanish Olympian, who has had an immediate adaptation to the marathon and this has allowed him to complete a historic season, was proclaimed champion of Spain in Paterna del Campo (Huelva) and of Europe in Ramales de la Victoria (Cantabria), and also won the overall title of the World Cup.

“I won the race and then the overall and it helped me get rid of the bad taste in my mouth from the World Championship the previous week”acknowledged David Valero, who, after these successes, continues to have unfinished business in the Marathon World Championship, in which this year he finished eleventh after suffering a breakdown in the first kilometers.

This setback conditioned his options in the competition, which is why he admitted that “it is the victory that is most difficult for him to achieve.”