Alejandro Valverde

This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Valverde and the second or maternal family name is Belmonte.
Alejandro Valverde

Valverde at the 2015 Tour de France
Personal information
Full name Alejandro Valverde Belmonte
Nickname Balaverde (The Green Bullet)
El Bala (The Bullet)
El Imbatido (The Unbeaten)
Born (1980-04-25) 25 April 1980
Las Lumbreras, Spain
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[1]
Weight 61 kg (134 lb; 9.6 st)[1]
Team information
Current team Movistar Team
Discipline Road
Role Rider
Rider type All-rounder
Professional team(s)
2002–2004 Kelme–Costa Blanca
2005– Illes Balears–Banesto
Major wins

Grand Tours

Giro d'Italia
1 individual stage (2016)
Tour de France
4 individual stages (2005, 2008, 2012)
Vuelta a España
General classification (2009)
Points classification (2012, 2013, 2015)
Combination classification (2003, 2009, 2012)
9 individual stages[N 1]
2 TTT stages (2012, 2014)

Stage races

Critérium du Dauphiné (2008, 2009)
Volta a Catalunya (2009)
Vuelta a Andalucía (2012, 2013, 2014, 2016)
Vuelta a Burgos (2004, 2009)
Vuelta a Castilla y León (2016)

One-day races and Classics

National Road Race Championships (2008, 2015)
National Time Trial Championships (2014)
Liège–Bastogne–Liège (2006, 2008, 2015)
La Flèche Wallonne (2006, 2014, 2015, 2016)
Clásica de San Sebastián (2008, 2014)
Paris–Camembert (2008)
Roma Maxima (2014)
Vuelta a Murcia (2014)
GP Miguel Indurain (2014)

Other

UCI ProTour (2006, 2008)
UCI World Tour (2014, 2015)
Medal record
Representing  Spain
Road bicycle racing
World Championships
2003 Hamilton Road race
2005 Madrid Road race
2006 Salzburg Road race
2012 Valkenburg Road race
2013 Florence Road race
2014 Ponferrada Road race
Infobox last updated on
5 November 2016

Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (born 25 April 1980) is a Spanish road racing cyclist for UCI WorldTeam Movistar Team.[2] Valverde's biggest wins have been the 2009 Vuelta a España, Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2006, 2008 and 2015, La Flèche Wallonne (2006, 2014, 2015 and 2016), the Clásica de San Sebastián (2008 and 2014), the 2006 and 2008 UCI ProTours, and the 2014 and 2015 UCI World Tours. He has twice collected the silver medal in the UCI Road World Championships, in 2003 and 2005, as well as the bronze four times in 2006, 2012, 2013 and 2014. Valverde is rare in combining different specialities in road bicycle racing, being a strong climber, sprinter and time-trialist in his later years. After a lengthy court battle, he was suspended for two years as part of the Operación Puerto blood doping investigation, but he returned to competition in 2012 upon completion of the ban.

Biography

Born in Las Lumbreras, Murcia, Valverde came from a cycling family, his father Juan was an amateur bicycle racer and bought him a bike when he was six years old.[3] His brother Juan Francisco was also an amateur road racing cyclist. Valverde's first race was in Jumilla, in his region of Murcia, and he finished second. On the following week he won his second race in Yecla.[4] He allegedly took more than fifty consecutive victories between 11 and 13 years old, earning him the nickname El Imbatido (The Unbeaten).[5]

Amateur career

Due to his many wins, Valverde was offered to ride for the elite amateur team Banesto based in Navarra, some distance away from his home in Murcia. Perhaps due to the exhaustion from having to travel back and forth every weekend, his performance suffered while with the team.[5]

He moved to the development team of the Kelme professional squad and was coached by Francisco Moya, whom he credited with helping him become a better cyclist. Kelme also promised to allow him to move to the professional squad if he showed good performance. At the end of his first season with the Kelme amateur squad, they offered to move him to the professional squad.[5]

Kelme (2002–2004)

Valverde turned professional in 2002 when he signed a contract with the Spanish team Kelme–Costa Blanca, with whom he stayed until the end of the 2004 season. During his time with Kelme he had a breakthrough year in 2003 Vuelta a España, where he won two stages and finished third in the General classification. That year he also won the Vuelta a Mallorca and a stage in Tour of the Basque Country and other Spanish races like GP Primavera and GP Villafranca de Ordizia. He ended the season with a second place in the 2003 UCI Road World Championships behind Igor Astarloa after winning the sprint ahead of Peter Van Petegem and Paolo Bettini.[6]

In the 2004 season he decided to stay with Kelme despite the team's financial woes and offers from other teams. He went on to win the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, the Vuelta a Murcia, a stage in the Tour of the Basque Country, the Vuelta a Burgos and taking fourth in the 2004 Vuelta a España. Although he won a stage in the Vuelta, he was injured in a crash that forced him to downscale his ambitions in the overall classification.[7] He also participated in the 2004 Summer Olympics.

Caisse d'Epargne

Valverde joined the UCI ProTeam Illes Balears–Caisse d'Epargne in 2005.[8] He won the last stage in Paris–Nice and finished second overall behind Bobby Julich. He also took two stages in the Tour of the Basque Country. In his first ever appearance at the Tour de France, he won the 10th stage of the Tour de France ahead of Lance Armstrong, whom he beat in the sprint into Courchevel at the end of a mountain stage in the Alps.[9] After Stage 12, he was in 5th place on GC, 3 minutes and 16 seconds behind Lance Armstrong. He was also leading in the Young Rider Classification (white jersey), with a 3-minute and 9 second lead on Armstrong teammate Yaroslav Popovych.[10] However, Valverde was forced to withdraw from the Tour during the 13th stage because of a knee injury. Valverde recovered barely in time for the UCI World Cycling Championship in Madrid, Spain. The injury of Óscar Freire, who was the Spanish team captain, forced him to become the team leader, despite having had only one day of competition before the World's. Amazingly, he was able to be competitive and finished second to winner Tom Boonen.[11]

2006

In 2006, Valverde won a stage in the Tour of the Basque Country, finishing 2nd overall and capturing the points competition. He then completed a prestigious double in the Spring classics, winning La Flèche Wallonne and taking victory four days later at Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Valverde subsequently won a stage in the Tour de Romandie finishing 3rd overall. Valverde planned to challenge at the 2006 Tour de France, and has stated that he hopes to win in the future. He went to the Pinarello bicycle factory in Treviso, Italy, to optimize his time-trialing performance. In fact he started among the favourites for the Tour after the withdrawal of Jan Ullrich and Ivan Basso due to a doping investigation. However, on the third stage of the 2006 Tour de France, Valverde crashed, and had to abandon the Tour with a fractured right collarbone. His ambition to win a Grand Tour shifted to the Vuelta, later that year.

Valverde entered the 2006 Vuelta as the top favorite. Since he did not ride a full Tour de France he was in better condition than some of the other candidates for the victory: Menchov (title defender) and Sastre both ended in the top 10 of the 2006 Tour de France and were expected to be somewhat fatigued. Valverde won the 7th stage and dominated mountain stages, earning him the gold leader jersey after stage 9. Valverde lost the jersey however due to the aggressive climbing and attacking of Alexander Vinokourov. In the last time trial, Valverde again lost time on Vinokourov and had to settle for the 2nd place in the overall standings, his second podium finish in a Grand Tour. Following his impressive performance in the Vuelta Valverde won yet another major title, winning the 2006 UCI ProTour with several major races still left on the calendar as his point lead had reached unassailable levels. At the 2006 World Championship, Valverde was considered one of the favorites for the title. Although he did not win, he was able to finish 3rd and claim a bronze medal.

2007

He started 2007 by winning the overall classification at Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana and Vuelta a Murcia. In stage 4 of the Vuelta a Murcia, Valverde accomplished his first win in an individual time trial.[12] He also finished third in the Critérium International and fifth in Tour of the Basque Country. In the Ardennes classics he took second place in both La Flèche Wallonne and Liège–Bastogne–Liège, unable to repeat the double victory of 2006 season. In the 2007 Tour de France, Valverde was seen as one of the favorites for the yellow jersey until he had a disastrous individual time trial that diminished his chances of fighting for the overall classification. He subsequently finished sixth overall, eleven minutes behind, and thus finished his first Tour de France after being unable to complete the race in 2005 and 2006. He decided not to race the Vuelta a España in order to prepare for the 2007 UCI Road World Championships.[13] On 29 August 2007, the UCI announced that they prevented Valverde from riding the 2007 UCI Road World Championships in Stuttgart because of his possible implication in the Operación Puerto doping investigation to safeguard the atmosphere and reputation of the World Championships.[14] The UCI also called upon the Spanish Cycling Federation (RFEC) to open disciplinary proceedings against the rider, but RFEC refused to comply with the UCI's request, saying there was no new evidence against him. RFEC also included Valverde in its squad for the World Championships, where he ended up 2nd.[15] The matter was taken to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which authorised Valverde to participate in the 2007 UCI Road World Championships.[16]

2008

Valverde at the 2008 Vuelta a España, wearing the blue jersey of points classification leader.

In 2008, Valverde showed strong form in the spring. After winning the Vuelta a Murcia, Valverde was focused on training. He announced his readiness with a podium finish in the Klasika Primavera and a triumph at the Paris–Camembert. These successes foreshadowed excellent results in the Ardennes classics: a podium at the Amstel Gold and victory in the Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Valverde also won the 2008 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré and the Spanish National Road Race Championship in June. On 5 July, Valverde won the first stage of the 2008 Tour de France. His form faltered in the Pyrenees, and after being dropped on the Col de Tourmalet, eventually losing 5'52" to stage winner Leonardo Piepoli, scrapping hopes of a podium finish. He performed better in the Alps and claimed a top ten finish. On Alpe d'Huez it appeared that he was working alongside Team CSC to try to eliminate Cadel Evans. He followed the Tour with a strong victory in 2008 Clásica de San Sebastián, leading out the sprint and holding off Aleksandr Kolobnev and Davide Rebellin. Later, at the 2008 Vuelta a España, he started strong, winning the second stage and wearing the general classification leader on the third one. He was among the leaders in the first week. However, he lost around two minutes on a very wet stage to Saunces and any chance of a podium finish. However, he ended up in fourth position overall at the end with some strong performances including an impressive ride up the Angliru, where he was only bettered by Alberto Contador and then a good performance in the mountain time-trial. Before the participation at the 2008 UCI Road World Championships at Varese, he was mathematically proclammed the 2008 UCI ProTour winner, being his second win in the four editions of the competition.

2009

Valverde wearing the leader's jersey at the 2009 Vuelta a España

Valverde started 2009 in good form by taking the points and mountain classification in the Vuelta a Castilla y León while finishing 9th overall with two stage victories. He could not repeat his successes of the last few years in the spring classics with his best result being a 7th at La Flèche Wallonne. He won the Klasika Primavera and the Volta a Catalunya to put those disappointments behind him. With the threat of not racing the Tour de France hanging over his head he entered the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré hoping to prove his worth. He performed consistently throughout the two early time-trials to stay in touch with the leaders before finishing second on the Ventoux to take the lead in the overall classification. Though Cadel Evans repeatedly attacked him in the final days he stayed on his wheel, with the help of compatriot Alberto Contador, to take the yellow jersey. On the back of these successes he appealed his ban by the Italian authorities with the Court of Arbitration for Sport in the hope of racing the tour. On 20 September 2009, Valverde clinched the overall victory in the 2009 Vuelta a España.[17] Despite having no stage victories, Valverde's consistency in the mountains allowed him to keep his race all the way to end that he captured on stage 9.

2010

All his 2010 results were annulled because of the suspension.

2012

Valverde at the 2012 Tour de France; he won the seventeenth stage of the race.

Valverde made his return to the peloton during the 2012 Tour Down Under, the first race of the UCI World Tour season.[18] He won the race's fifth stage – the queen stage of the event – by out-sprinting GreenEDGE's Simon Gerrans in a two-man sprint in Willunga,[19] and finished second overall.[20] He earned his first overall victory since his return, by winning February's Vuelta a Andalucia,[21] as well as achieving a stage victory during the race. Valverde also finished third in Paris-Nice, and by winning stage 3 showed good form for the upcoming Tour de France. In the Tour de France he sat casually in the peloton until initiating a breakaway in stage 17, which he held onto after breaking away from the other 16 riders in the breakaway. Team Sky almost chased him down, ending only 19 seconds adrift. Hence Valverde won a 4th Tour de France stage of his career.

Valverde entered the Vuelta a España as a lieutenant to the defending champion Juan José Cobo in the Movistar team.[22] However, Valverde would soon become the leader when it became apparent that Cobo was not in top form.[23] His team Movistar started off with a victory in the first stage, a team time trial, of the Vuelta.[24] Valverde would take the lead of the general classification, points classification, and combination classification after winning Stage 3, in which he chased down repeated attacks from Alberto Contador and outsprinted Joaquim Rodríguez at the finishing line.[25] He would subsequently lose the lead to Rodriguez, but won the eighth stage atop the Collada de la Gallina in Andorra. Alberto Contador broke away from the small lead group and looked like he was heading for the win, but Rodriguez and Valverde passed him with less than 100 m (330 ft) to go, with Valverde taking the win.[26] Valverde ultimately finished the Vuelta in second position overall after being a constant threat for the leader, which was Rodriguez until stage 17 where Contador soloed to victory and grabbed the lead,[27] which he would not relinquish. Valverde also snatched both the Points classification and the Combination classification jerseys from Rodriguez as a result of a sixth-place finish on the very last stage in Madrid.[28]

Valverde had to settle for a bronze medal in the World Championships in Valkenburg, as he was unable to reach Philippe Gilbert who attacked on the final climb of the Cauberg. He was the first of a group of 27 riders who had a five seconds deficit on the Belgian when crossing the line.[29] He was supposed to participate in the Giro di Lombardia, but announced on the morning of the race that he was suffering from influenza and was putting an end to his 2012 season.[30]

2013

Valverde wearing the Green Jersey at the 2013 Vuelta a España

As in 2012, Valverde won the overall classification of the Vuelta a Andalucía in 2013, where he also won the points classification in the race.[31] Valverde continued showing some good form after finishing with podium places in the Vuelta a Murcia, the Amstel Gold Race and in the Liege-Bastogne-Liege. After having a decent spring campaign, Valverde aimed for a podium finish in the Tour de France.[32] Valverde started the Tour in good form after finishing third in Ax3 Domaines behind Chris Froome and Richie Porte. However the next day, Porte lost over 15 minutes which moved Valverde into second overall right before the tour left the Pyrenees. On Stage 13, Valverde lost almost 10 minutes after getting a flat tire. Despite a very hard pursuit, the high crosswinds and the pace of the peloton prevented him and his teammates from catching back. They ended up with the second group at the finish causing him to slip out of the top ten.[33] Despite losing his second position, Valverde managed to do well in the Alps which moved him back into the top ten of the overall standings, finishing 8th overall.[34]

At the Vuelta a España, after stage 10, Valverde sat fourth overall a minute behind race leader Chris Horner. However, on stage 11, he moved back up into 3rd after finishing 8th in the time trial. On stage 14, on a rainy descent, Valverde was dropped by the G.C. contenders entering the final climb a minute back. He managed to limit his losses on the final climb staying within a minute of his rivals, though losing close to a minute on Nibali, Horner, and Rodriguez. On stage 16, he managed to cut back a handful of seconds on Nibali and Horner. He entered the penultimate stage 20 a minute behind the race leader. He came third of the stage which finished atop the steep Angliru, securing a podium finish in the general classification, one minute and 36 seconds behind race winner Chris Horner.[35] At the World's Championships, he took the third place, but was criticized for failing to cover the late attack of Portuguese Rui Costa.[36] Costa eventually reached and out sprinted Joaquim Rodríguez, Valverde's fellow Spaniard and teammate.

2014

Valverde at the 2015 Tour de France.

In the 2014 Tour de France Valverde ended in fourth place in the general classification. On 2 August 2014 Valverde won the Clásica de San Sebastián for the second time in his career. He won the first uphill finish of the Vuelta a Espana by powering away from the leaders after leading the group for most of the final climb.[37] He finished the Spanish Grand Tour on the third step of the podium behind Chris Froome and the overall winner Alberto Contador.[38] After the Vuelta, it was announced that Valverde had signed a three-year contract with his team, Movistar, meaning that he would ride for them until at least 2017.[39] At the World Road Race Championships in Ponferrada, Valverde stood on the third step on the podium for the third year in a row.[40] He came in second at the Giro di Lombardia, passing Alberto Contador for first place in the UCI World Tour rankings.[41]

2015

Valverde on the podium after winning the 2015 Liege-Bastogne-Liege

Valverde grabbed three stage victories in the Volta a Catalunya. On stage 2, he got the better of a bunch sprint and helped score a 1-2 for Movistar with his teammate José Joaquín Rojas.[42] On stage 5, he launched a late attack as he was part of a small group containing all the leaders coming into Valls and won solo.[43] On the last stage (7), he won the sprint of a group of about 40 riders and with the seconds bonifications, snatched the second place of the overall classification from Domenico Pozzovivo.[44] At the Amstel Gold Race he came in second, being bested in a small group sprint by Michal Kwiatkowski.[45] The following Wednesday, Valverde equalled the record number of victories on La Flèche Wallonne with 3, distancing Julian Alaphilippe and Michael Albasini in the final meters of the Mur de Huy.[46] He went one better the following Sunday, winning the sprint of a small group of riders to impose himself on Liège–Bastogne–Liège. It was the third time in his career Valverde had won La Doyenne.[47] It was also the second time that he had won Liège–Bastogne–Liège and La Flèche Wallonne in the same year, becoming only the second rider to have achieved this double twice, after Ferdinand Kübler.[48] In June, he won the National Road Race Championship.[49] At the 2015 Tour de France, Valverde finished on the podium in 3rd place, his first podium finish at the Tour; achieving a lifelong dream of a top 3 finish at le Tour. With that finish he has one career goal left, a World Championship.[50][51]

2016

Valverde at the 2016 Tour de France

Valverde´s main goals for the 2016 season are the Ardennes Classics, the Giro d´Italia and the Road Race at the Olympic Games in Rio. He started his season by taking the overall at the Vuelta a Andalucía in February. He out-powered the rest of the contenders, including Tejay van Garderen and Rafal Majka, on the climb up to the finish on the final stage. Valverde changed his initial plan of riding the Tour of Flanders and went to Tenerife to prepare for the Giro. He returned to competition by winning two stages and the overall at the Castilla y León which he chose to race instead of the Amstel Gold Race, a race still lacking from his Palmáres.

The following Wednesday he took his third consecutive Flèche Wallone and became the most prolific winner of the "smallest" Ardennes Classic with his fourth victory. He showed his climbing prowess by controlling up until the last 150 meters when he accelerated away from his rivals to take the victory. On Sunday he went out to repeat his Ardenne Double from 2015 by securing another Liege-Bastogne-Liege win but he fell short and only managed to finish 16th.

Valverde was named in the start list for the Giro d'Italia, his first participation in the Italian race.[52] The Spanish veteran rode a consistent race but struggled in the high mountains especially on the queens stage in the Dolomites where he lost more than three minutes. He fought back the very next day with a third place in the Mountain Time Trail and managed to win his first ever Giro d'Italia stage the day after the rest day in Brixen-Andalo, his 14th GrandTour stage win in total. He secured his spot on the podium by outclimbing Steven Kruijswijk on the very last mountain stage and finished third overall, becoming only the 16 cyclist to finish on the podium in each of the three GrandTours. Later that year, by finishing sixth in the Tour de France, Valverde made it nine consecutive top 10 finishes in his last nine grand tour starts (a feat that hadn't happened since the days of Miguel Indurain).

Doping

Alejandro Valverde has been linked by documentary and DNA evidence to the Operación Puerto, a blood-doping affair which erupted in May 2006 against doctor Eufemiano Fuentes and a number of accomplices. It uncovered doping products, bags of blood and human plasma, and code names that appeared to link top athletes, including up to 60 cyclists, to a highly organized system of doping, which relied heavily on blood transfusions.[53]

Valverde was not initially linked in the investigation, but documents from Madrid's Court 31 linked Valverde to a single bag of human plasma of the 211 total bags of blood and plasma seized in the investigation. The bag of human plasma was labelled with the codes Valv, Piti and 18.[54][55] In 2007 Valverde was banned by the International Cycling Union (UCI) from competing in the UCI Road World Championships in Stuttgart but Valverde was cleared by the Court of Arbitration for Sport to compete at the championships.[56] Dick Pound, World Anti-Doping Agency president, said the CAS decision did not mean that Valverde was no longer a suspect.[57]

In early 2009 the Italian National Olympic Committee matched DNA samples taken from Valverde during a rest day in Italy of the 2008 Tour de France to plasma seized in the Operación Puerto investigation.[58] At a February 2009 appearance in front of the Olympic Committee, Valverde maintained his innocence and questioned the Italians' jurisdiction over this case. In May 2009, the Italian Olympic Committee suspended him from competition in Italy for 2 years, effectively barring him from the 2009 Tour de France, which detoured briefly onto Italian soil.[59] Valverde filed an unsuccessful appeal against the Italian ban with the Court of Arbitration for Sport; in a second hearing on 18–21 March 2010, the UCI and WADA contested the Spanish Cycling Federation's decision not to open a case against Valverde.[60]

Finally, on 31 May 2010 it was announced the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld the appeals from WADA and the UCI and Valverde was banned for two years, starting 1 January 2010, but rejected the request that any results obtained by the athlete prior to the beginning of the suspension be annulled.[61][62] After serving the two-year suspension Alejandro Valverde returned to competition in 2012 riding for the Movistar Team.

Career achievements

Major results

2001
3rd Mediterranean Games Road Race
2002
7th Circuito de Getxo
8th Clásica de Almería
9th Overall Clásica Internacional de Alcobendas
2003
1st Klasika Primavera
1st Prueba Villafranca de Ordizia
1st Stage 3 Vuelta a Aragón
2nd UCI World Road Race Championships
3rd Overall Vuelta a España
1st Stages 9 & 15
1st Combination classification
3rd Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
3rd Overall Troféu Joaquim Agostinho
1st Stages 4a & 5
3rd Trofeo Mallorca
3rd Trofeo Luis Puig
5th Overall Tour of the Basque Country
1st Points classification
1st Stage 3
5th Trofeo Calvia
8th Trofeo Cala Bona-Cala Rajada
8th Trofeo Manacor-Porto Cristo
2004
1st Overall Vuelta a Burgos
1st Stages 1, 2 & 3
1st Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
1st Stages 2 & 3
1st Overall Vuelta a Murcia
1st Trofeo Cala Millor
1st Klasika Primavera
2nd National Road Race Championships
2nd Trofeo Luis Puig
4th Overall Vuelta a España
1st Stage 3
4th Overall Vuelta a Castilla y León
1st Stages 3, 4 & 5
4th Trofeo Calvia
6th UCI World Road Race Championships
6th Overall Tour of the Basque Country
1st Points classification
1st Stage 1
10th GP Miguel Indurain
2005
1st Trofeo Manacor
1st Trofeo Soller
1st Stage 10 Tour de France
Tour of the Basque Country
1st Stages 3 & 4
2nd Overall UCI World Road Race Championships
2nd Overall Paris–Nice
1st Young rider classification
1st Stage 7
2nd GP Miguel Indurain
4th Trofeo Calvia
10th Trofeo Alcudia
2006
1st UCI ProTour
1st La Flèche Wallonne
1st Liège–Bastogne–Liège
2nd Overall Vuelta a España
1st Stage 7
2nd Overall Tour of the Basque Country
1st Points classification
1st Stage 1
3rd Overall Tour de Romandie
1st Stage 4
3rd UCI World Road Race Championships
7th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré
7th Overall Vuelta a Murcia
1st Stage 2
7th Clásica de Almería
8th Clásica de San Sebastián
2007
1st Overall Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
1st Overall Vuelta a Murcia
1st Stage 4
2nd National Road Race Championships
2nd Overall Vuelta a Burgos
1st Stage 4 (ITT)
2nd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
2nd La Flèche Wallonne
2nd Klasika Primavera
2nd Clásica a los Puertos de Guadarrama
3rd Overall Critérium International
1st Points classification
3rd Clásica de San Sebastián
3rd GP Miguel Indurain
5th Overall Tour of the Basque Country
6th Overall Tour de France
6th Amstel Gold Race
8th Overall Clásica Internacional de Alcobendas
1st Stage 3 (ITT)
2008
1st National Road Race Championships
1st Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré
1st Points classification
1st Stages 1 & 3 (ITT)
1st Overall Vuelta a Murcia
1st Stage 4
1st UCI ProTour
1st Liège–Bastogne–Liège
1st Clásica de San Sebastián
1st Paris–Camembert
2nd Klasika Primavera
3rd Amstel Gold Race
5th Overall Vuelta a España
1st Stage 2
7th Overall Critérium International
9th Overall Tour de France
1st Stages 1 & 6
2009
1st Overall Vuelta a España
1st Combination classification
1st Overall Volta a Catalunya
1st Stage 3
1st Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré
1st Overall Vuelta a Burgos
1st Klasika Primavera
2nd Overall Vuelta a la Comunidad de Madrid
3rd National Road Race Championships
4th Overall Tour de Romandie
7th La Flèche Wallonne
9th UCI World Road Race Championships
9th Overall Vuelta a Castilla y León
1st Points classification
1st Mountains classification
1st Combination classification
1st Stages 3 & 5
2012
1st Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
1st Points classification
1st Stage 2
1st Stage 17 Tour de France
2nd Overall Vuelta a España
1st Stages 1 (TTT), 3 & 8
1st Points classification
1st Combination classification
2nd Overall Tour Down Under
1st Stage 5
2nd Klasika Primavera
3rd UCI World Road Race Championships
3rd Overall Paris–Nice
1st Stage 3
9th Overall Tour de Suisse
2013
1st Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
1st Points classification
1st Prologue (ITT) & Stage 3
1st Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana
2nd Giro di Lombardia
2nd Amstel Gold Race
2nd Clásica de San Sebastián
3rd UCI World Road Race Championships
3rd Overall Vuelta a España
1st Points classification
3rd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
3rd Vuelta a Murcia
4th GP Miguel Indurain
6th Milano–Torino
7th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné
7th La Flèche Wallonne
8th Overall Tour de France
9th Overall Tour de Romandie
2014
1st National Time Trial Championships
1st Overall UCI World Tour
1st Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
1st Points classification
1st Combination classification
1st Prologue (ITT), Stages 1 & 2
1st Vuelta a Murcia
1st Roma Maxima
1st GP Miguel Indurain
1st La Flèche Wallonne
1st Clásica de San Sebastián
2nd National Road Race Championships
2nd Overall Route du Sud
2nd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
2nd Giro di Lombardia
3rd UCI World Road Race Championships
3rd Overall Vuelta a España
1st Stages 1 (TTT) & 6
Held after Stages 2, 6–8
Held after Stage 15
Held after Stages 6–17
3rd Strade Bianche
4th Overall Tour de France
4th Amstel Gold Race
5th Overall Tour of the Basque Country
2015
1st National Road Race Championships
1st Overall UCI World Tour
1st Liège–Bastogne–Liège
1st La Flèche Wallonne
1st Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana
2nd Overall Volta a Catalunya
1st Stages 2, 5 & 7
2nd Amstel Gold Race
2nd Trofeo Andratx-Mirador d'es Colomer
3rd Overall Tour de France
3rd Overall Tour of Oman
3rd Clásica de San Sebastián
3rd Strade Bianche
4th Overall Dubai Tour
4th Giro di Lombardia
5th UCI World Road Race Championships
5th GP Miguel Indurain
6th Vuelta a La Rioja
7th Overall Vuelta a España
1st Points classification
1st Stage 4
7th Overall Abu Dhabi Tour
9th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné
2016
1st Overall Vuelta a Castilla y León
1st Combination classification
1st Points classification
1st Stages 2 & 3
1st Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
1st Stage 5
1st La Flèche Wallonne
2nd Vuelta a Murcia
3rd National Time Trial Championships
3rd Overall Giro d'Italia
1st Stage 16
3rd Clásica de San Sebastián
4th Klasika Primavera
5th Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana
6th Overall Tour de France
6th Il Lombardia
8th Trofeo Pollenca-Port de Andratx
10th Strade Bianche
Vuelta a España
Held after Stage 8
Held after Stages 10–19

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

Grand Tour 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Pink jersey Giro — — — — — — — — — — — — — — 3
Yellow jersey Tour — — — WD WD 6 9 — — — 20 8 4 3 6
red jersey Vuelta WD 3 4 — 2 — 5 1 — — 2 3 3 7 12

WD = Withdrew; In Progress = IP

Classics results

This table shows Valverde's classics/one-day race results.

Year Strade Bianche Milan–San Remo Amstel Gold Race La Flèche Wallonne Liège–Bastogne–Liège Clásica de San Sebastián UCI Road World Championships Giro di Lombardia Paris–Tours
2003 54th 2nd 39th
2004 61st 6th
2005 33rd 13th 40th 34th 8th 2nd 12th 20th
2006 24th 23rd 1st 1st 8th 3rd DNF
2007 7th 2nd 2nd 3rd 57th 59th
2008 3rd 21st 1st 1st 37th
2009 21st 7th 19th 17th 9th
2012 22nd 46th DSQ 26th 3rd
2013 13th 2nd 7th 3rd 2nd 3rd 2nd
2014 3rd 4th 1st 2nd 1st 3rd 2nd
2015 3rd 20th 2nd 1st 1st 3rd 5th 4th
2016 10th 15th 1st 15th 3rd 6th

Notes

  1. ↑ Valverde has won nine stages over a period of seven races at the Vuelta a España. He won two stages in 2003 and 2012, and one each in 2004, 2006, 2008, 2014 and 2015.

References

  1. 1 2 "Alejandro Valverde profile".
  2. ↑ Stokes, Shane (30 December 2011). "Juan Jose Cobo signs two year contract with Movistar team". VeloNation. VeloNation LLC. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
  3. ↑ "El portento del pelotón". elperiodicodearagon.com. 14 October 2003. Retrieved 2008-01-17.
  4. ↑ "Valverde: Siempre campeón, en la bici y en la noche de bodas". as.com. 13 July 2005. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  5. 1 2 3 "Valverde: "Mis sueños de niño se están haciendo realidad"". as.com. 24 December 2005. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  6. ↑ "Day 6 – October 12: Elite Men Road Race, 260.4 km". cyclingnews.com. 12 October 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  7. ↑ "X-rays OK for Valverde". cyclingnews.com. 15 September 2004. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  8. ↑ "Valverde confirms close deal with Illes Balears". cyclingnews.com. 19 October 2004. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  9. ↑ "Stage 10 – Tuesday, July 12: Brignoud – Courchevel, 181 km". cyclingnews.com. 12 July 2005. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  10. ↑ "Stage 13 – Friday, July 15: Miramas – Montpellier, 173.5 km". cyclingnews.com. 15 July 2005. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  11. ↑ "Race 6 – September 25: Elite men's road race, 273km". cyclingnews.com. 25 September 2005. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  12. ↑ "Stage 4 – March 10: Alhama De Murcia – Aledo ITT, 23.3 km". cyclingnews.com. 10 March 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  13. ↑ "Monday's EuroFile: Valverde at Burgos; No Vuelta for Astana; Farrar on reserve". velonews.com. 13 August 2007. Archived from the original on 12 October 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  14. ↑ "Press release : Puerto affair : the UCI seeks disciplinary proceedings against Alejandro Valverde". uci.ch. 29 August 2007. Archived from the original on 15 May 2011. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  15. ↑ "Spain defy Valverde world champs ban". uk.eurosport.yahoo.com. 20 September 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  16. ↑ "Alejandro Valverde Authorised to ride in the World Championships in Stuttgart". tas-cas.org. 26 September 2007. Archived from the original on 10 February 2008. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  17. ↑ "Valverde wins Tour of Spain crown". BBC Sport. 20 September 2009. Archived from the original on 21 September 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-21.
  18. ↑ "Alejandro Valverde to ride in Tour Down Under". USA Today. David Hunke; Gannett Company. Associated Press. 3 January 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2012.
  19. ↑ Brown, Gregor (21 January 2012). "Valverde wins Tour Down Under stage five, Gerrans in lead". Cycling Weekly. IPC Media Limited. Retrieved 21 January 2012.
  20. ↑ Hinds, Alex (22 January 2012). "Gerrans crowned Tour Down Under champion in Adelaide". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. Archived from the original on 23 January 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
  21. ↑ Hymas, Peter (19 February 2012). "Valverde wins Vuelta a Andalucia". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. Retrieved 23 February 2012.
  22. ↑ "Movistar emphasises Vuelta leadership role is for Cobo". 13 August 2012.
  23. ↑ Will Protheroe (20 August 2012). "2012 Vuelta a España: Alejandro Valverde Wins Stage 3, Takes Overall Lead". Bleacherreport. 2012 Bleacher Report, Inc. Retrieved 11 September 2012.
  24. ↑ "Vuelta Stage 1: Movistar take team time trial in Pamplona, but it's tight at the top". 18 August 2012.
  25. ↑ "Vuelta Stage 3: Valverde beats Rodriguez on the line, Froome responds to Contador attacks". 20 August 2012.
  26. ↑ Susan Westemeyer (25 August 2012). "Valverde denies Contador the Vuelta stage win". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. Retrieved 25 August 2012.
  27. ↑ Susan Westemeyer (5 September 2012). "Contador solos to stage win, Vuelta lead". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. Retrieved 11 September 2012.
  28. ↑ Atkins, Ben (9 September 2012). "John Degenkolb gets number five on final stage as Contador wins". VeloNation. VeloNation LLC. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
  29. ↑ Atkins, Ben (23 September 2012). "Philippe Gilbert solos to World road race championship". VeloNation. VeloNation LLC. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  30. ↑ "Valverde out of Tour of Lombardy with influenza, ends season". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. 29 September 2012. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
  31. ↑ "Vuelta a Andalucia Ruta Ciclista Del Sol: Valverde clocks up fourth win in just seven days of racing". VeloNation. VeloNation LLC. 20 February 2013. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  32. ↑ Peter Cossins (28 June 2013). "Valverde: I'll finish on Tour de France podium if all goes to plan". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  33. ↑ Kenny Pryde (12 July 2013). "Mark Cavendish wins, Alejandro Valverde loses on stage 13 of the Tour de France". VeloNews. Competitor Group, Inc. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  34. ↑ "Classifications". Tour de France. ASO. 21 July 2013. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  35. ↑ Daniel Benson (15 September 2013). "Chris Horner wins 2013 Vuelta a Espana". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  36. ↑ Shane Stokes (30 September 2013). "Video: Rodriguez and Valverde face criticism over Spanish team tactics at world championship road race". VeloNation. VeloNation LLC. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  37. ↑ "Valverde wins stage 6 of the Vuelta a Espana". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. 28 August 2014. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  38. ↑ "Contador seals overall 2014 Vuelta a España victory". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. 14 September 2014. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  39. ↑ "Alejandro Valverde signs new 3-year deal with Movistar". USA Today. Associated Press. 17 September 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
  40. ↑ "Michal Kwiatkowski wins road world title". CBC. CBC 2014. Associated Press. 28 September 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
  41. ↑ Pete Cossins (5 October 2014). "Martin wins Il Lombardia". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  42. ↑ "Volta a Catalunya: Valverde wins in Olot". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. 24 March 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  43. ↑ "Valverde wins again in Catalunya". VeloNews. Competitor Group, Inc. 27 March 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  44. ↑ Stephen Puddicombe (29 March 2015). "Richie Porte holds off Valverde to seal overall win in Catalunya". Cycling Weekly. IPC Media Sports & Leisure network. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
  45. ↑ "Kwiatkowski sprints to first victory in rainbow jersey in Amstel Gold Race". VeloNews. Competitor Group, Inc. 19 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  46. ↑ "Valverde wins La Fleche Wallonne 2015". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. 22 April 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
  47. ↑ Nigel Wynn (26 April 2015). "Alejandro Valverde wins Liege-Bastogne-Liege 2015". Cycling Weekly. IPC Media Sports & Leisure network. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  48. ↑ "Five conclusions from Liège-Bastogne-Liège". cyclingnews.com. 27 April 2015. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  49. ↑ Axelgaard, Emil (28 June 2015). "Valverde fires warning shot with Spanish road race win". Cycling Quotes. CyclingQuotes.com 2013. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  50. ↑ (French) Alexandre Herbinet (26 July 2015). "Tour de France: Valverde, le podium patient" (in French). BFM TV.
  51. ↑ "Valverde: "This is something I've pursued all my life"". Marca.com. 25 July 2015.
  52. ↑ "99th Giro d'Italia Startlist". Pro Cycling Stats. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  53. ↑ "Puerto case to be reopened". velonews.com. 14 February 2008. Archived from the original on 8 July 2008. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  54. ↑ "211 bolsas para 35 deportistas". El Pais.com. 19 March 2013. Retrieved 2014-03-08.
  55. ↑ "No EPO in Basso's blood bags but different for Valverde". cyclingnews.com. 7 May 2007. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  56. ↑ See 2007 season section for further information.
  57. ↑ "Puerto case to be reopened". velonews.com. 15 November 2007. Archived from the original on 23 November 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  58. ↑ "No EPO in Basso's blood bags but different for Valverde". cyclingnews.com. 11 February 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  59. ↑ Prosecutor Recommends 2 Year Ban SI.com, 1 April 2009
  60. ↑ "Pro Cycling News". Daily Peloton. Retrieved 2010-09-20.
  61. 1 2 "The CAS imposes a two-year ban on Alejandro Valverde". CAS. 31 May 2009. Archived from the original on 5 June 2010. Retrieved 2009-05-31.
  62. ↑ "Alejandro Valverde handed two-year ban". The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. 31 May 2010. Archived from the original on 3 June 2010. Retrieved 2010-05-31.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alejandro Valverde.
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Joaquim Rodríguez		 Spanish Road Race Champion
2008 		Succeeded by
Rubén Plaza
Preceded by
Danilo Di Luca		 La Flèche Wallonne
2006 		Succeeded by
Davide Rebellin
Preceded by
Alexander Vinokourov		 Liège–Bastogne–Liège
2006 		Succeeded by
Danilo Di Luca
Preceded by
Danilo Di Luca		 Liège–Bastogne–Liège
2008 		Succeeded by
Andy Schleck
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