The Colombian cyclist Nairo Quintana is still without a team and waiting for an opportunity, after he terminated his contract with Arkea-Samsic following his disqualification from the Tour de France last year.
Quintana, who had finished in the Top 10 of the general classification, was punished after tramadol was detected in a control, a substance that is not considered doping, but is prohibited by the UCI.
The penalty did not disqualify Nairo from running. However, the rider turned to CAS to try to get the UCI points he earned on that Tour back, to no avail.
“I have not robbed anyone, I have not killed anyone. We were in the nationals, I wanted to win, I came from a virus, but I’m going with everything, in the fight, I wanted to make people enjoy but I wanted to enjoy myself, it was a very nice podium, with riders who fight generals in Europe and that gives me Don’t worry, I’m on a good level. We continue forward, thinking of having a number for important races and the day it is achieved will be a great joy, not only for Nairo, but for Colombia,” Nairo told ESPN at the end of March.
“I’ve been talking to different people, having different talks, and right now any team can hire me without a problem. Some teams are full and that makes it very difficult,” Nairo said then about his future.
However, the outlook for Nairo seems increasingly complicated. At least, that’s what Johan Bruyneel, former manager of the US Postal, Discovery Channel and Astana teams, told Colombian journalist Óscar Restrepo Pérez.
Restrepo assured that Bruyneel sent him a message, according to which Nairo’s chances of returning to an important team are nil. “They made the cross, he’s screwed, forget it, he doesn’t run again”, was the quote from Bruyneel that Restrepo recounted in space The Woodman. It should be remembered that Bruyneel was banned for life for the systematic use of EPO in his equipment.
“There are people who were exonerated and continue to pay the blame. Nairo is going to continue fighting, he is training, but as long as he does not make the reconversion that some suggested, but that his environment did not allow, it will be difficult for him to return to deep-rooted cycling,” he added. Restrepo.
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