Threats of strikes in Sierra Nevada puts altitude camps of many top teams at risk

Sierra Nevada might remain unusually silent next month. It's around that period of the year that snow finally retreats and the best of best in cycling peloton head to the altitude to ride important kilometers in their Tour de France prepataion. However planned strikes of local hospitality emplyees could alter these plans for many.

"We can't go on like this," UGT (Union General de Trabajadores) representative Carlos Aranguren told Cyclingnews, "because in any negotiations there has to be give and take on both sides. In an ideal world we wouldn't have to suffer the effects of altitude like that, but that's not practical. The centre's up there specifically because of the altitude, but we have to head up there and back down every day."

"Some studies say one thing, others another, but it's clearly something that has an effect. You just have to take up a bottle of water from one height to another and bring it back down and you can see what happens to it. That pressure affects you and we deserve some kind of economic recognition for that."

For cyclists and other athletes who remained at altitude, "the effect is hugely beneficial, because they stay up there for much longer periods of time. But going up and down constantly has exactly the opposite effect on your health."

Apart from a significant increase in numbers over the years (up to 400% since 2015), Aranguren said that May was also when the majority of bike riders began to train at altitude. "Up to now they can use the indoor facilities we've got, but outdoors there's still a lot of snow. It's next month, when the snow melts, that that changes and you come across riders outside, training, almost every day."

"Cycling is one of our top sports, together with swimming. Even if riders aren't actually staying in the CAR (Centro de Alto Rendimiento), we get a fair number who stay in apartments, but come in each day to have meals in the dining room or to use the training facilities we've got." May, too, is when the strikes will be taking place with the UGT workers if an agreement is not reached.

But Aranguren is not optimistic, saying requests for even minimal bonuses to compensate for the altitude question had been rejected. "We've got another protest on April 23 and then from May onwards, we'll have one or two days of strikes. But after that, they'll increase because we have to stop this, one way or another. At this rate, it's them [the employers] that'll be going up [to Sierra Nevada] every day."