Liberty Seguros rider Joseba Beloki used to be a major threat to Lance Armstrong at the Tour de France a few years ago, but ever since the Spanish climber broke his bones on the sticky tarmac of the Col de la Rochette in 2003, he has never been able to fulfil all the promises of his talent again. This year, he made his comeback at the French Grand Tour, and could barely live up to his most modest ambitions: finishing it. Speaking to Spanish Marca, Beloki has now revealed that he did hope to be at the top of his form once again this summer.
"I have to be back up front," Beloki said. "I want to try to be at the best possible level; it's a personal challenge." The Spaniard is still an important part of the Liberty Seguros team, as director Manolo Saiz made him share a room with Kazakh champion Alexandre Vinokourov at the team's training camp in Cantabria recently, which could indicate that he would be likely to be integrated in the 2006 Tour de France roster. "Of course Vinokourov will be our leader at the Tour [assuming that Roberto Heras will receive a suspension - ed.]. If my level next year is the same as it was in the first half of 2005, I'll have to keep my hopes down, but if I'm on the same level as I was in the Vuelta, I can set myself some goals," commented Beloki, whose confidence has been boosted since September.
