Rui Costa recalls his dream of making the top 10 in the Tour de France: "It wasn't a mistake to want to do something in the Tour. But beating Froome and Wiggins was impossible"

Rui Costa went back in time to the time he was wearing the colors of Lampre-Merida, which would later become UAE Team Emirates, to talk about his Tour de France dreams and ambitions in the words he gave to the sports newspaper O Jogo.

After becoming world champion and winning the Tour de Suisse, he came to believe that he could fight for something in the Tour de France: "I wouldn't say it was a mistake to go to the Tour de France. When you see that you have skills in the one-day and one-week races, you think about the three weeks. And the Tour inspires me. In 2014, we changed the planning, we stopped doing explosive work and I focused on the mountains, on regular rhythms and more endurance."

"The work was well done. I wanted to do a top 10, but my health didn't allow it. I abandoned due to bronchopneumonia and stopped believing that a podium in the Tour was possible. I wanted to go back to my roots, it was more about me fighting for one-day races. Thinking about beating [Bradley] Wiggins and [Chris] Froome was impossible. And I like to dedicate myself to things where I feel I can win".

He did the Tour of Flanders in 2009 and 2010. He's back 14 years later and explains what motivates him: "Flanders was always the race that never spoke to me. I've seen it on TV and something tells me I should do it. Just like [Milano] Sanremo. I wanted to do both, but the plan didn't allow for both. It's going to be an adventure. [Neilson] Powless was fifth the first time he went there. I'm going to risk it, I've got nothing to lose. I want to do the previous race, on the parallel, to get the feel of the pavé, the control on the bike. The tire pressure is different. The important thing is to have a good day. That way I could get a good result."

"I've always had the virtue of wanting and being able to win. I've never felt pressure, I've always been able to run with the idea of fighting to win," he says. He's not afraid of being left without a team, despite signing contracts for just one year: "I'm not afraid. I'm 100% dedicated. It won't be because I don't have a team. Fortunately, there have always been teams interested. My idea is annual. I think I can do more this year [2024] and next [2025]. We're solo athletes, but I feel motivated in training. There's one thing that keeps me going: thinking about winning. As long as I have that feeling, I'll be there."

Regarding his schedule at EF Education-EasyPost, he explains: "I start in Mallorca, do the [Volta ao] Algarve, Figueira [Champions Classic], Gran Camiño, Strade Bianche and [Vuelta a] Catalunya. Then I prepare for Flanders. I'd already done it many years ago. It used to be for strong cyclists, but I've seen that there are medium-mountain racers there," he concludes.

Article written by Carlos Silva.