Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank): ‘Nobody wants to believe it, but I’m less talented than Fränk’

The youngest talent that we can admire on the bike these days, lives in Luxembourg and is called Andy Schleck.

It’s right before the Dauphiné Libéré. Andy Schleck just went to the Alps with his brother and sportdirectors Kim Anderson and Bjarne Riis. He is noticeable tired, even when we meet him in his homecountry Luxembourg, days after his training. Even the big talents are getting tired some day. “In five days we did six mountain stages”, he says. “We only did the climbs, the flats we skipped. After that we practised a couple of days on our time trail, with the specialists of the team. Bad memories I kept when we trained the team time trail. We cycled 115 km everything à bloc. It hurts, I can tell you that!”
The youngest of the Schleckbrothers still talks like a greenhorn. He is one of the most simple and approachable guys of the peleton. Not self-evident, when you won Liege-Bastonge-Liege at the age of 23. It’s only a mater of time when he adds another victory to his list. Maybe even this year at the Tour de France.

What did you learn from your training in the Alps?
Andy Schleck: “That the last week of the tour will be extremely heavy. The stage to Andorra, stage 7, will be the first major test. After that there’s no big challenge until the Alps. Likely the decision of the tour will take place here.
The big challenge at the start of the tour will be mentally. I’ve worked really hard at my timetrail, but I know: the prologue in Monaco is not my cup of tea. If it’s disappointing I don’t have to give up. The first week we cycle along the coast and with the side wind you can easily lose time. So it’s crucial that you have to be focussed all the time.”

What will be a good result for you in Monaco?“I would be happy when I can be with the first 15. It’s ambitious, but possible, because what I did last year in the time trail wasn’t that bad. At the first timetrail I finished 19th, and only lost a minute on Cadel Evans and Denis Menchov. At the last timetrail I wasn’t that good. But I hadn’t anything to lose or win at that moment. And at the end of the tour, you don’t want to hurt yourself anymore, or it has to be necessary. You only think about the finish, believe me (laughs).”

Will the timetrail always be your weakest link?“My body isn’t build on timetrailling, but I don’t let this encourage me. My legs fit twice in Alberto Contador’s, so this is a disadvantage for me. But look at Andreas Klöden, he had the same physique build as me, and on the timetrailbike he’s a beast! I think for me it’s mostly mentally.
I’ve done everything to improve my timetrailling. Powertraining, SRM-tests, special trainings with Fabian Cancellara … In the winter I trained three times a week at my timetrailling. I’ve improved technically.”

Is there a cyclist, apart from Fabian Cancellara, who likes to do a teamtimetrail?
“I doubt it! I hate a teamtimetrail. A solo timetrail is also hard, but if it doesn’t work out you can always slow down. This doesn’t work in the team. You can let the team go and stay behind, this isn’t an option for me, or you can die on your bike. A teamtimetrail is the hardest discipline in cycling!”