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Coppi-Bartali week, 22 to March 26 Tonkov without Giro At the end of the season 2004, the team Vini Caldirola separated into two. A part of manpower joined the team of the Pro-Tour Liquigas, the other the Barloworld team, in the second division. But Pavel succeeded in finding an agreement with none of both. At the end of December, Pavel is always without team, also his "old friend" Dimitri Konyshev proposes to him to join him in Italian team LPR. "I had the leaders of the LPR to the telephone on December 31. We spoke and I gave my verbal agreement. And in early January, I signed the contract". Clasica Alcobendas, May 7, and 8 Tonkov is always the Tsar! Pavel Tonkov is known to be a proud champion. He cannot run Giro? Then he will win the Clasica Alcobendas which is held whereas Giro springs, and to prove, once again, that he is always one of the best runners of the group.
Bicicleta Vasca, 1 to June 5 Doubts of Tonkov... At the beginning of Bicicleta Vasca, Pavel is in full doubt. His victory at Alcobendas made him understand that he was always among the big protagonists of the group, so much so that it is from now on difficult for him to think that he will stop his career at the end of the season...
Tour of Lombardy, October 15 "I says only goodbye, not good-bye" "During three years, I had doubts as for the idea to leave this trade. And at the end... of the end, I must decide and I think that this moment arrived " "I had a long life on the bicycle, long and beautiful career. I am very satisfied and I thank cycling for all that it gave me. Now, I must leave my place for the young people who arrive. "The Tour of Lombardy was my last race like cyclist racing. That displeased to me because it is not easy to leave this trade. And I did not want to think of it. In my head, I wanted to remain cyclist racing until the last moment. I did not want either to announce my front withdrawal, because that would not have been just. I am not like Armstrong, who can gain her last race before withdrawing. Me, I have 37 years, and this Tour of Lombardy, I could not win it, even if it were my last important race. I did not want to organize a festival either, because that would have been even more difficult for me. I would have felt that something finished. But, for me, nothing is finished. I cannot thus leave, in once, this sport which gave me so much. I stop only my trade of cyclist racing, not the sport. I always look at towards the future, and this future, I always see it in the cyclist medium. It is now my project. And I have already many ideas at the head. For example to have my team. I want to use all the experiment as well as possible that I acquired with the length of these years. "My last victory, I obtained it in Spain, on my roads of drive. That pleased very to me to win close of at home and in front of my family. But I remember all my victories as well, of the World Junior in Bergamo, into 87, with my last victory of stage in Giro, in 2004. Several time, it was asked me why I made this famous arm of honor while passing the line. It was only one gesture of rage against the journalists, which did not regard me any more as one protagonist of Giro. This gesture, I only did made it "by justice". "Of my career, I always remember the most beautiful moments, and I do not have a memory more beautiful than another. I want only to say that I can offer my victories to all the supporters which likes this sport. Because, for me, if the supporters did not exist, this sport does not function. In race, I always had a thought for all these people who waited to us during hours, under the sun and the rain, and I thought "the poor". Because, the most beautiful thing, in this sport which is cycling, it is the passion which joins together the runners and the supporters. Really, cycling is a sport of passion. "A the end, my thoughts go towards the young people. I want to remember that several times to much said me that they were interested in cycling thanks to me, because they saw me running. And these compliments always did me very pleasure. And if that made it possible to create vocations, then that wants to say that I would have made a success of my career well beyond my hopes. All these young people, who want to start in cycling, I want to say to them to be patient, to learn, listen to their parents and the director of their club, to regard it as a professor. "I thank everyone. I say only goodbye, not good-bye " Pavel Tonkovkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk |
Pavel
regrets the bad evolution of cycling: "In
modern cycling, it seems more y to have of space for those, like
me, which have experience and which can teach with the young people
how one runs". Also, he is felled very well in young
team LPR, "with all these young people,
I have experience with my advantage. I hope to be able to teach
them the good things". His objective is again the Giro.
At 36 years, Pavel is sure of still being able to be a large protagonist:
"I like the course much and I can still
give much emotions to the tifosi". However, LPR does
not form part of the Pro-Tour, it must hope for an invitation.
But Angelo Zomegnan, the organizer of Giro, announced publicly
that "at the beginning there will be
all the winners of Giro in activity". The new one falls
on March 2: team LPR is not invited. Pavel is disappointed: "What
a damage! I will not be in Giro...". There were alas
only two invitations to distribute... Pavel tries quickly to forget
his disappointment: "I continue to run
because I like this sport, and Giro or not, I have to give still
much". This season, Pavel made the opening of the season,
but has to give up in Milan-San Remo because he fells ill. He
finds the competition at the Coppi-Bartali Week: "I
thought of recovering more quickly. But in the first stage, I
again felled that I had fever. I do not like that because I am
not in the best provisions to run. But I want to hold hard and
I hope to be in measurement to finish the race". Pavel
finishes and the moral one is very good in team LPR, because at
each race where they take part, they manage to win a stage. What
to cause a sharp emulation at Pavel...
This
spring, Pavel prepares as if he were going to take part in Giro.
Thus, he is present with the best at the time of the first arrival
at the top of the Tour of Trentin, but instead of preparing for
Giro, he prepares for the Clasica Alcobendas, race which proceeds
on his usual roads of drive and which it never took part. The
first stage finishes at the top of Puerto de Navacerrada (1830
m). Pavel attacks as of the first slopes and widens a small gap.
Then Nicolas Fritsch and Fran Pérez joined it. This one passes
immediately to the attack and Pavel succeeds in taking his wheel.
They remain together until the last 500 meters, where Pavel passes
again to the attack, upright on the pedals. Perez cannot follow.
Tonkov wins at the top! "I am really
very content with this success. I felt that my form improved of
day in day and today, I tried my chance. Which effect that does
it make win at 36 years? The same effect as to gain to 20. These
are roads that I know very well. But to gain here, with these
adversaries, it is really a great satisfaction". The
following day, team LPR easily controls the short stage of the
morning. The afternoon, it is the time-trial in Alcobendas of
14,2 km. 
At
the general, Pavel has only 12" in advance on Angel Gomez Marchante,
the second. And at semi-course, Pavel has 13" of delay on him.
Thus, when Gomez Going passes the finishing line, his sporting
director shouts to him: "You winned! You winned!" But Pavel had
not provided his effort yet. And Tonkov wins Clasica de Alcobendas
for... 3"! That made seven years that he had not winned a stage
race any more!!! "That was hard, because
Spanish made a point much of winning this race. I was afraid of
the return of Gomez, but today also I felled very well and thus,
I left quietly. Now, I run to appease my passion for the sport
cyclist, and with this success, I am very glad to have been right
to continue in this direction. Yes, I do not run any more the
large turns, but I am also happy to take part in smaller races,
in which I have better chances to impose to me. I now hope to
be able to win other races this season, which is perhaps my last..."
"I
do not know what I will do. I was always cyclist racing and when
I will stop, I know that I will be bored. If I stop at the end
of the season, I will benefit from it to travel and visit Spain,
Italy and Russia. But I am afraid, even while travelling, that
I am bored if I do not catch my bicycle beside me..."
While waiting for, Pavel hates the new system in which moves professional
cycling: "the UCI Pro-Tour does not function.
I am afraid which it does not cause the ruin of many teams and
much organizers. In the races of the Pro-Tour, they are perhaps
the best teams which runs, but not the best runners...".
In connection with his objectives on this Bicicleta Vasca, Pavel
remains modest: "I believe that, at my
age, I am not already any more in condition of winning such a
mountainous race. My objective is to win a stage, or at least,
to make a success of a good attack". In the third stage,
towards Strio de Oro, Pavel is into escaped and wants to try to
win the stage. But the final one proposes a very difficult coast,
and Pavel cannot resist at the attacks. He is then 6th of the
general classification, but gives up at the time of the last stage.
At the end of the season, Pavel is quite present in the Italian
races, but he does not have any more the same motivation. His
decision is made.