Tinkoff-Saxo and Alberto Contador have returned from Africa, where the Spanish captain conquered the highest peak of his career, the 5,895-meter high Kilimanjaro. He reached the top of the mountain together with 70 percent of the members of Tinkoff-Saxo after a hard five-day climb in some of the worst conditions seen in a decade.
“It was a new experience, where the whole team worked together, sharing good times and some really difficult moments as well. The weather certainly didn’t help us. For the first three days it rained a lot and we didn’t have time to dry our wet clothes and equipment like tents and sleeping bags,” commented Alberto Contador and added:
“The hardest thing about the first three days was the constant rain, not the physical exertion or altitude as we didn’t go over 3,800 meters”.
“Of course, the real test was the final climb to the summit on the last day,” continued Tinkoff-Saxo’s captain. “We went from the last camp, located at 4,600 meters, to Uhuru Peak, 5.895 m, the highest point of Kilimanjaro. That day we woke up at 11:30pm at night and aimed at reaching the summit at sunrise, but it was difficult to fall asleep. That last night before we embarked on the final climb to the top, it was really windy and difficult to climb. But luckily, the wind died out little by little and we decided to give it a try”.
Alberto Contador was the first team member to reach the top at 4.30am in the morning. As a natural climber on his bike used to pushing himself to the limit, Alberto wanted to face a mountain higher than ever before in his professional career and life.
“It was a new challenge for me because I didn’t know how my body would respond to the altitude. But the sensations I had were pretty good. Only after passing the 5,400-meter mark I noticed some discomfort in my stomach but it quickly disappeared, which kept me going at a good pace to the top”, explained Alberto, who according to the local guides reached the top in a record time.
The entire group of Tinkoff-Saxo, with 72 people among riders and technical staff, were organized in small groups on the last part of the climb, always accompanied by guides to avoid getting lost on the many mountain trails.
“In my case, I went with Valgren, Kiserlovski and a guide”, recalls Contador. “We had difficult moments. Although I was lucky that the altitude didn’t affect me, there were teammates, who were affected and had to turn back, others needed help to get to the summit. There were also some that had to return to the camp without remembering what had happened. But that was also one of the goals of the expedition, to face situations that involved fellowship and helping each other in difficult situations. I think we achieved that goal, although it wasn’t easy”, concludes Alberto Contador.
For him and the rest of Tinkoff-Saxo, the expedition to Kilimanjaro “has been a good experience that marks the start of the 2015 season, which is probably the most challenging season of my career with the Giro-Tour double. Now I have to recover from this trip and focus on my own task, which is my bike”, adds the winner of Vuelta a España.
