The Vuelta Ibiza MTB SCOTT by Shimano, one of the tests that more athletes manage to put together every Easter, has confirmed this Tuesday the participation of the cyclist Óscar Freire. This is the first confirmed for this competition, which over the years has brought together great names in cycling on the island of Ibiza, with some 1,000 participants who attend each year.
Freire can be seen in action on April 7, 8 and 9 in Ibiza. His partner will be his son, Marcos Freire. At 16 years old, the young man is already a promise of national cycling and rubs shoulders with professionals such as Pogacar or Ayuso. Both will run in the father and son category.
Currently retired, Freire continues to be linked to cycling and has a record that leaves no one indifferent. “With a record of victories in the Road Cycling World Championship, he is considered one of the best sprinters of his time. He was world champion in 1999, 2001 and 2004, as well as winning Milan-San Remo in 2004, 2007 and 2010. He has He was the only Spaniard who made the podium in the now defunct World Cup and in his participation in the Tour de France in 2008 he won the green jersey.He was also present at the Olympic Games in Sydney 2000, Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008, missing London 2012 due to an injury that later led to his withdrawal”, recalls the organization of the Tour in a press release on the matter.
Father and son
In addition, the ex-cyclist has detailed that he will participate together with his son: “The Tour of Ibiza MTB SCOTT by Shimano is going to be very special for me. It is the first time that I have run with my son and I am especially excited. I think it will be an experience very beautiful, in which we will have to improvise because he still has a long way to go”. Likewise, he believes that it is a good opportunity to get to know Ibiza in another way: “The island has much more to offer than people think. It has incredible sites, many corners to discover. In mountain bike racing you have to solve problems at the moment, it is not the same as the road“.
In fact, Óscar Freire is at a point where he wants to experiment: “I want to do different things.” “I’m looking forward to MTB. I would have loved that when I was a professional they were allowed to participate in this type of tests”, he added.
The Vuelta a Ibiza MTB SCOTT by Shimano will be his second test in pairs and he assures that he has very good expectations: “I come with very good recommendations from Purito, Hermida… Sometimes they talk very well about other tests and then you find yourself with something that has nothing to do with it, but they have pointed out how different Ibiza is. The organization, the people, the route… It’s worth it for those who go and come back for something”.
