Off to London

What are your ambitions for the Olympic road race?I want to score a success as any other rider who is going there. I´m flying to London with the feeling of having done my best in the preparation but it is hard to make any predictions before the Olympic race. There are much more possibilities of the race scenario than at the Worlds where the strongest countries have even more riders and the race is therefore much more controlled.Can you describe your final preparation scheme?After getting back from Poland I was riding in the Šumava mountains where a great crew of riders gathered thanks to František Raboň and Stanislav Kozubek. Over the weekend I practiced in the Krušné mountains. Then I went to Pilsen on Monday and the next day I traveled back to Šumava. I rode for six hours in nice weather. The first part of the ride was in a rolling terrain and then I included some big climbs. Overall, I put in about 3,000 climbing meters. It was a perfect training that I needed before the Olympics. On Wednesday I did a training ride behind a car. Today I´m just going to spin my legs, then get a massage and after that I´m off to the airport.Why aren’t you leaving until Thursday?Initially, I was supposed to fly with the Czech team on Tuesday but then I rebooked the tickets for Thursday. I had no idea what I would be doing in London. It is hard to practice there because of the traffic and it will be enough if I check the course on Friday. It was much easier for me to prepare in peace at home. I know that many elite riders have done the same thing.How is an Olympic success perceived in the world of professional cycling?The winner doesn’t get a jersey but because the Olympics is held every four years, it definitely carries a high value. There are many riders at the start and almost everyone goes there with the thought of taking the victory. Many things have to work out, including luck.What memories do you have of Beijing?Good ones, even though I was sorry about not having finished in a better position. I went away in a big group and it was too bad that we were brought back. They caught us and then the riders stopped racing. I hope I will achieve a better result this time around. The start and the finish is near Buckingham Palace, which will be very tempting.Is anybody going to support you in London?My girlfriend Míša and sister Terezka are coming on Friday.I suppose you won´t attend the opening ceremony that is held a day before the race.That would be very irresponsible of me. I´m sorry about missing the ceremony for the second time and for the same reason. But I´m going there to compete in an Olympic race, not as a tourist.