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João Almeida - Bota Lume

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António morgado will be the first portuguese to win a grand tour.
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  1. Almeida believes he could had podium in 2022 if covid-19 didn't catch him;
  2. He is very, very happy with 3rd place. This podium brings him relief and a sense of accomplishment after 2022 frustration;
  3. He considers himself on the road to the top but he's not yet there; perhaps after 1-2 seasons; currently he believes he's in the top 10 (GC wise) below Pogacar, Roglic, Thomas, Evenepoel, Simon Yates
  4. Pogacar send him a couple of messages after his win; he also told Almeida to attack further and win the maglia rosa; and finally, they're supposed to be friends;
  5. He considers that cycling is currently in technological terms like Formula 1: every upgrade matters and that's why races are being raced faster and records are being broken;
  6. He's pratically the same weight-wise as in 2021; but with more muscle mass, which is important for disputing sprints;
 
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3. He considers himself on the road to the top but he's not yet there; perhaps after 1-2 seasons; currently he believes he's in the top 10 (GC wise) below Pogacar, Roglic, Thomas, Evenepoel, Simon Yates
Top 10 makes sense but he hasn’t seemed to improve much in the last couple years and he left out names like Ayuso, Tao etc. I think his chances of winning a GT are not as good now as I would’ve expected a couple years ago.
 
  1. Almeida believes he could had podium in 2022 if covid-19 didn't catch him;
  2. He is very, very happy with 3rd place. This podium brings him relief and a sense of accomplishment after 2022 frustration;
  3. He considers himself on the road to the top but he's not yet there; perhaps after 1-2 seasons; currently he believes he's in the top 10 (GC wise) below Pogacar, Roglic, Thomas, Evenepoel, Simon Yates
  4. Pogacar send him a couple of messages after his win; he also told Almeida to attack further and win the maglia rosa; and finally, they're supposed to be friends;
  5. He considers that cycling is currently in technological terms like Formula 1: every upgrade matters and that's why races are being raced faster and records are being broken;
  6. He's pratically the same weight-wise as in 2021; but with more muscle mass, which is important for disputing sprints;
Races are being faster because of better equipment.....nice joke.
 
Could you summarize? I really dislike using Google translate.
Besides what Elos Anjos said in that interview to "oJogo" newspaper Almeida also stated:

- During Giro 2nd week he was sick and had to be treated with antibiotics. He didn't specified what was the illness but it wasn´t covid.
- He will go to TDF next season but won't be working for Pogacar, stated that Pogacar doesn´t need his help, there will be other riders to do it and that it will be a good thing to have two leaders in the race.
- He also said that the 1 minute difference in the final GC to Roglic and Thomas is something that he thinks he will be able to close in the next 2 years in terms of his expected evolution.
- He sees himself closer to the 1st tier GC riders and capable of making the leap needed to be there in the next 1/2 YEARS

I´m glad to see him with the ambition to grow into a future GT win. If he will make it time will tell
 
Top 10 makes sense but he hasn’t seemed to improve much in the last couple years and he left out names like Ayuso, Tao etc. I think his chances of winning a GT are not as good now as I would’ve expected a couple years ago.
We never know when we will have the next big rider, there are some looming every season with the potential to be the next "Evenepoel/Pogacar" (Ayuso, Arensman, Uijtdebroeks, Carlos Rodriguez...)

That's obvious that he still lacks that final punch and those extra watts/Kg that riders like Roglic, Evenepoel, Vingegaard, Pogacar have. In the end that's what makes the diference.
Those gaps generated by the attacks of Roglic at stage 8 and 18 and Thomas at stage 19, small gaps made in short seconds burts in the last Kms that Almeida wasn't capable of following and determined combined a 54 seconds deficit regarding Roglic and Thomas, it was there in those small details that he lost his chances to fight for the win and that's what he needs to improve.
In conclusion and regarding Almeida´s improvement I disagree with you, despite not being a phenomenal development i think that he has improved in the mountains, his positioning was way better this Giro and he returned to his 2020 itt performance. He also showed a more attacking and ambitious profile (Monte Bondone).
Besides San Millan stated that Almeida has more room to improve so i'll take his words for good, after all he is not a generational talent like Evenepoel or Pogacar so with the age of 24 it's fair and logical enough to think that he still can improve.
 
It‘s true: Covid just called me and it had just come back from the doctor‘s office and it was diagnosed with a bad case of Almeida. Tremendously sad.
That's fair what he said in my book.
Before stage 17 he was 3rd at GC behind Carapaz by 44 seconds and Hindley by 40. Then at stage 17 he lost 1 minute and 10 seconds to them, a stage where he was already sick with covid and not generating the watts that he was capable of (according to Matxim) which was probably related (kind of the same that happened with Evenepoel itt at stage 9 this year).
Without covid he would probably be much closer at GC after stage 17 and the podium was in his reach, more wouldn't surprised me if he could be with Hindley at Marmolada.
I bet that in the last stage (itt) he would gain close to 1 minute on Carapaz and Hindley and above that over Landa.
 
- During Giro 2nd week he was sick and had to be treated with antibiotics. He didn't specified what was the illness but it wasn´t covid.
- He will go to TDF next season but won't be working for Pogacar, stated that Pogacar doesn´t need his help, there will be other riders to do it and that it will be a good thing to have two leaders in the race.
So a bacteria infection if treated with antibiotics, most likely respiratory.

It will be nice seeing him at the Tour next year and is a silent threat in Pog’s cap.
 
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So a bacteria infection if treated with antibiotics, most likely respiratory.

It will be nice seeing him at the Tour next year and is a silent threat in Pog’s cap.
Yes to be treated with antibiotics it was a bacteria infection.
Yes it will be nice to see him at TDF but if needed at some point of the race surely Almeida will have to sacrifice his GC ambitions to work for Pogacar.
 
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  1. Almeida believes he could had podium in 2022 if covid-19 didn't catch him;
  2. He is very, very happy with 3rd place. This podium brings him relief and a sense of accomplishment after 2022 frustration;
  3. He considers himself on the road to the top but he's not yet there; perhaps after 1-2 seasons; currently he believes he's in the top 10 (GC wise) below Pogacar, Roglic, Thomas, Evenepoel, Simon Yates
  4. Pogacar send him a couple of messages after his win; he also told Almeida to attack further and win the maglia rosa; and finally, they're supposed to be friends;
  5. He considers that cycling is currently in technological terms like Formula 1: every upgrade matters and that's why races are being raced faster and records are being broken;
  6. He's pratically the same weight-wise as in 2021; but with more muscle mass, which is important for disputing sprints;
Thanks very much!
 
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Yes to be treated with antibiotics it was a bacteria infection.
Yes it will be nice to see him at TDF but if needed at some point of the race surely Almeida will have to sacrifice his GC ambitions to work for Pogacar.
I was just stated for those who might not know that antibiotics are only for bacterial infections. Just like if they don’t know they need to finish the whole regimen even if they’re feeling better. And vaccines are for the lovely V’s.
 
  1. Almeida believes he could had podium in 2022 if covid-19 didn't catch him;
  2. He is very, very happy with 3rd place. This podium brings him relief and a sense of accomplishment after 2022 frustration;
  3. He considers himself on the road to the top but he's not yet there; perhaps after 1-2 seasons; currently he believes he's in the top 10 (GC wise) below Pogacar, Roglic, Thomas, Evenepoel, Simon Yates
  4. Pogacar send him a couple of messages after his win; he also told Almeida to attack further and win the maglia rosa; and finally, they're supposed to be friends;
  5. He considers that cycling is currently in technological terms like Formula 1: every upgrade matters and that's why races are being raced faster and records are being broken;
  6. He's pratically the same weight-wise as in 2021; but with more muscle mass, which is important for disputing sprints;

Ah yes very good, a fellow Simon Yates enthusiast! I see Joao too is a man of real class and character.
 
Besides what Elos Anjos said in that interview to "oJogo" newspaper Almeida also stated:

- During Giro 2nd week he was sick and had to be treated with antibiotics. He didn't specified what was the illness but it wasn´t covid.
- He will go to TDF next season but won't be working for Pogacar, stated that Pogacar doesn´t need his help, there will be other riders to do it and that it will be a good thing to have two leaders in the race.
- He also said that the 1 minute difference in the final GC to Roglic and Thomas is something that he thinks he will be able to close in the next 2 years in terms of his expected evolution.
- He sees himself closer to the 1st tier GC riders and capable of making the leap needed to be there in the next 1/2 YEARS

I´m glad to see him with the ambition to grow into a future GT win. If he will make it time will tell
He is delusional if he thinks is not going to work for pogacar if necessary.
 

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