Nairo Quintana is still a cyclist

There was a lot of expectation before the press conference called by Nairo Quintana in which, despite the rumours about the announcement of his retirement, he confirmed that he will continue trying to find a place in European cycling and took the opportunity to silence the news generated around him and at the same time, to thank the support he has received during these months.

Nairo Quintana is not giving up

Almost everyone took Nairo's retirement for granted when, a couple of days ago, he announced that he was calling the media to a press conference that took place a few minutes ago in Bogota.

After a tense wait, increased by the delay in his appearance, Nairo, in a powerful tone, read a statement in which he began by affirming that "a cyclist does not give up in the face of adversity", which gave us an early indication of what the message of the appearance would be.

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Nairo Quintana has reviewed his successes in the different squads in which he has ridden and affirmed, boasting of his record as the Colombian cyclist with the most victories. At the same time he pointed out that he has always been consistent with his way of riding.

He also made a small criticism when referring to what he described as "the events of the last few months" and "the inexplicable wall that has been built up", in clear reference to the veto of some teams and the alleged pressure received from the Tour de France organisers to prevent other teams from signing him.

In any case, Nairo Quintana has been categorical, declaring that "I'm not giving up and I'm moving forward".

As expected, Nairo Quintana has continued to defend his innocence in the Tramadol case, alluding to the more than 200 tests he has passed during his sporting career while expressing his "honesty, commitment to clean sport and the highest ethical standards".

Nairo Quintana concluded his speech by thanking the companies and sponsors who have continued to place their trust in him and the Colombian teams that have offered him a place in their ranks, an option he has rejected in the desire to "continue to leave the flag of my country high in the best races in the world".

Nairo Quintana's next moves are to travel to Europe in mid-February and directly resume contacts with several teams with which he had been in negotiations to try to unblock his situation.

Meanwhile, the Colombian confessed that he is in good shape after training this winter, although he will not take part, as he had initially planned, in the Colombian Championships to be held from the 2nd to the 5th of February due to some health problems he has suffered in the last few days.

In short, despite the expectation created by the appearance of Nairo Quintana, the reality is that there are no changes in the situation of the cyclist who, with the season already started, is still without a team and facing a complicated scenario to find a place in a team.