Abu Dhabi: The UAE national team will be missing the services of their No 1 rider Yousuf Mirza for the Abu Dhabi Tour starting today, but UAE Cycling Federation President Osama Ahmad Al Shafar is confident his teammates will not just be there to make up the numbers.
“We will be missing Yousuf as he is on national duty in Thailand at the UCI Asia Tour, but I would like to tell you that we still have a strong team,” Al Shafar said on the sidelines of a bicycle store opening here.
“You will not see our team lagging behind — they will be with the peloton all the time.”
Al Shafar hopes the platform given to the UAE riders at the Abu Dhabi Tour will do a world of good for their confidence.
“The national team and the Skydive Dubai team riders have got a chance to put themselves among the cream only because we are the hosts and I’m sure they will be looking to make the most of the opportunity,” he said.
“We want to improve the level of our riders and that can happen only if they are competing with riders who are professionals. So this serves as a good opportunity for our boys.
“We have the Arab Championships coming up and then the GCC. These boys will be heading for that soon after this tour and so this will be the best build-up.”
Long way to go
Al Sharaf, however, feels the UAE riders still have a long way to go before they can join the sport’s elite. “It is a very tough question to answer as to when we can see a top class rider coming from here. These professional cyclists train for 8 to 10 hours [daily]. Our cyclists work in the morning and then come and train after 3.30pm. So it is tough for them and the only way we can match is by roping in full-time professionals,” said Al Sharaf, who has been at the helm for three years.
“We need cyclists who are ready to sit on the saddle all the time. The more you train, your level improves, but even if you stop for 10 days then you have to start from scratch. It is tougher than any other sport.”
