Valverde, Contador and Freire to Beijing

By Antonio J. Salmerón

Following the Spanish championships last weekend, national selector Francisco Antequera has already selected winner Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne) along with Óscar Freire (Rabobank) and Alberto Contador (Astana) to form the core of Spain's road race contingent at the Olympic Games in Beijing.

However, Antequera has decided against the inclusion of national time trial champion Luis León Sánchez (Caisse d'Epargne) and also Oscar Sevilla (Rock Racing), who took silver behind Valverde on Sunday. Giro d'Italia champion Contador and Euskaltel-Euskadi leader Samuel Sánchez are likely to ride the time trial, along with José Iván Gutiérrez (Caisse d'Epargne).

The remaining candidates for the Spanish Olympic squad are Carlos Barredo (Quick Step) and Carlos Sastre (CSC-Saxo Bank), with Antequera waiting until after the Tour de France before making a final decision.