Change is never an easy prospect but shunning it can be equally as hard. In the slightly more eloquent words of Maya Angelou: “Stepping onto a brand-new path is difficult but not more difficult than remaining in a situation”.
I know this myself after deciding to upend the life I had spent the best part of a decade creating to take on a new challenge midway through 2019. There have been some stresses and strains along the way but it, ultimately, turned out to be the right choice for me.
Whatever your career, leaving behind what you’ve known for years to step into an entirely new environment is scary. Professional cycling’s no different. Each time a rider signs with a new team it comes with an element of risk but few moves seem more adventurous than Nairo Quintana’s to Arkéa-Samsic for 2020.
By the time his three-year contract with the French team was announced in September, there was little surprise among anyone with a passing interest in cycling. So many months of rumours had preceded the announcement that it was easy to forget just how bold a decision it was. Here was a two-time Grand Tour winner stepping out of the WorldTour for a second tier team. It was a bolshie move that the Colombian’s performances had sorely lacked in recent years.
Quintana had been with the same team for eight years, had never raced for a non-Spanish speaking team and, usually for the peloton, spoke just one language. The easy option would have been to stick around at Movistar and hope the situation changed but, after a couple of frustrating years, it seemed Quintana was not prepared to do that. Many questioned how wise the decision was but that did not bother the Colombian.
“Some have understood my choice, others have not. Too bad,” Quintana told the French publication Le Telegramme at the end of last year. “These are things that happen in life. At some point, you have to open your eyes and look ahead.”
It appears that Quintana hasn’t spent much, if any, time looking back since the season began. With nine days of racing in the tank in 2020, he already has a win on Mont Ventoux and the Col d’Eze on the scorecard and two general classification victories. It’s too early in the season to make a true judgement on how successful the move has been but the importance of the first win can not be underestimated.
It is in stark contrast to the struggles Andre Greipel had during his early months with the team in 2019, a tenure that ultimately ended prematurely. An early win lifts the pressure and removes the initial question marks over the Colombian as he heads towards bigger goals. It also gives the team around him confidence that he can deliver on the foundations they have laid.
While Quintana is one of the most consistent stage racers in the peloton, the killer instinct he had in his younger years seemed to fade as time went by. There was the odd flash of it at times but his performance on Mont Ventoux at the Tour de la Provence was a hark back to a Quintana of old. In a new setting, Quintana appears to have much more confidence on the bike than we have seen in such a long time. He was not afraid to take a punt from a distance and it paid off. Yes, it was against a weaker field than he will face as the season develops but those behind were not to be underestimated.
The first major test of Quintana 3.0 will be Paris-Nice, where he finished second last year, and the Volta a Catalunya. Tough competition awaits him in both of these events, including his compatriot Egan Bernal and former teammates Mikel Landa and Alejandro Valverde.
As the season progresses, it will be fascinating to see how Quintana’s relationship with new teammate Warren Barguil develops. The French champion did a turn for him on Ventoux, before Winner Anacona put the hammer down, but there will come a time when Barguil will want his own opportunities. If the two riders and the team can find the right balance they could prove to be a formidable pairing.
In the meantime, Quintana looks like he has found his mojo again and I for one hope it is here to last.
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