Two days to measure the strength of a block, defend one’s interests and fight with high speed in Almagro
XXI Sanroma Memorial
From 22nd to 23rd February
The Balearic Joan Martí Bennassar, the Riojan Arturo Grávalos, the Castilian-Leonese Vicente Hernaiz, the Catalan Álex Martín, the Castilian-La Mancha Fernando Tercero and the Andalusian David Martín and Mario Vilches make up the seven with which the Kometa-Xstra will compete this coming weekend in a new edition of the Manuel Sanroma Memorial in Almagro.
The usual start of the campaign for the U23 structure of the Foundation in previous seasons, the start of the course in the recent Memorial Chineta de Burguillos in Toledo, with victory for the Italian Alessio Acco, brings to the experience for this year an extra competitive shooting that surely will not come bad in an event without great difficulties orographic characterized by high average speed. The Alto de Hortezuelas, which is crowned at 1,011 meters at kilometer 65 of the second stage, is once again the great mountain of the Memorial. The general tone will be that of controlling formations with fast men and managing fatigue and efforts in a terrain not lacking in slopes where the action of the wind can also have much to say.
Without a doubt the event will be very special for Arturo Grávalos. The former triathlete is facing what will be his first big competition after the accident last year, which forced him to finish the season in a hurry. Grávalos took part in the Memorial Chineta, but he had to take it as a first contact: “I am really looking forward to wearing a number again, to start competing and to get to the level I was at before the injury. I’m really looking forward to trying out a little bit against the others, too. After this long break I don’t know how I will be compared to the rest of the riders”.
For Grávalos the Sanroma Memorial is an event where the Kometa-Xstra can play an interesting role: “We have a good team and we all arrived very well prepared, so I’m sure we will be good at both stages. We have riders for all terrains”. Due to the pedal point shown a few days ago also in the lands of Toledo, Vicente Hernaiz from Valladolid can perform very well in this competition. “It’s easier to adapt to my characteristics if it’s hard and you arrive in a not so pure sprint”.
Mario Vilches, cyclist of the U23 team from Jaén, also faces the Sanroma Memorial after having previously competed in the Chineta Memorial. “I’m in very good shape, I think better than I finished last year in the Vuelta a Galicia. But it is not a race that fits my profile, so we will have to work and give everything for the team and also continue to prepare future commitments, for example, in the Spanish Cup”.
The stages.
22 February: Almagro-Almagro, 105 km (35 km x 3 laps).
23 February: Almagro-Almagro, 145 km.
(automatic translation, sorry for mistakes)
