Volta Catalunya 2024: Jambaljamts Sainbayar, the cyclist who came from the snow | Cycling | Sports

Jambaljamts Sainbayar, during the presentation of Burgos in the first stage of the Volta.volta catalunya

His escape in the first stage of the Volta Catalunya went to waste because his legs couldn’t do any more and because the peloton, governed by the UAE, wanted to throw Pogacar before the finish line in Lleida, even though he stayed second behind the surprising Schultz (Israel). But Jambaljamts Sainbayar (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia; 27 years old), although exhausted, ended the day with a smile because he was always clear about what he wanted. “I remember when I was 17 I gave an interview to a sports newspaper in my country and the headline was ‘Jambaljamts wants to become Mongolia’s first professional cyclist in the future.’ And that is exactly what I have achieved ten years later,” the runner from Burgos-BH, a team with which he has signed for a course, tells EL PAÍS. His has cost him.

As a child he never stopped moving and always took refuge in sports to burn calories. Soccer, skiing and riding on two wheels, a passion that he discovered early on because his parents, he in the military and her English teacher, gave him a bicycle when he turned three. “I rode it all day, except in winter, since it was completely snowy, but I didn’t take it seriously until I started secondary school,” says Jambal, as they call him in Burgos-BH, for the sake of simplicity. By then, he was already devouring each stage of the Tour on television, always keeping an eye on his two favorite riders: Alberto Contador and Richie Porte. “When I turned 15 I participated in my first race, a time trial that I finished in second position,” he recalls. An incentive for his unwavering ambition, because since then not even the winter and the 25 degrees below zero have kept him off his bike. “I wore two pants and two jackets because, in addition, Ulaanbaatar is very windy almost all year round, so I grew up riding fans.” A resistance that made him make his way.

After standing out in his country, he decided to race in smaller category teams such as the RTS of Taiwan and the Ferei-Avanger-Panda of Ukraine to arrive, in 2022, at Teregganu-Polygon of Malaysia, where he added victories in the Tour of Iran and Huangshang (China), in addition to winning the national road and time trial title in his country. “But now that I have become a professional cyclist and I see that I am improving my level to the highest level, which I already consider my greatest victory, I want to go further,” he says. That will be, for now, with Burgos-BH. “In recent years I had tried to sign with a ProTeam and between Damien Garcia -sports director of the Burgos team- and my coach at Terengganu, Jeremy Hunt -former Banesto and Sky cyclist-, they gave me the opportunity to race in Europe,” he agrees. A very different experience from the one he lived on the Asian circuit: “We traveled a lot from one country to another, countless flights to compete. The roads, furthermore, are many highways and are better for sprinters. But there are not as many mountains as in Europe, where there are big climbs, narrow roads, technical curves… And the level of racing is much higher.”

But that does not prevent him from showing himself with the team as he did in the second stage of the Volta. “I arrived a few days ago from racing in the Tour of Taiwan and I had a bit of jet-lag, so I’m not yet in my best physical condition. The goal is for the entire season to be as successful as possible,” he accepts. But he does hope to arrive at the end of July in the best possible way, as it will be the first time that a Mongolian participates in the Olympic Games, both on the road and in the time trial. “Cycling is not a very common sport in Mongolia, but the Federation is creating new races and trying to make the sport better known in the country,” he reveals. Meanwhile, he will continue trying to leave his mark with Burgos-BH.

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2024-03-24 04:15:00
#Volta #Catalunya #Jambaljamts #Sainbayar #cyclist #snow #Cycling #Sports