The Green Bullet - The rise, fall and resurrection of Alejandro Valverde and Spanish cycling¿s corruption

New from award-winning author Matt Rendell, an examination of the phenomenal success of Alejandro Valverde and the moral decay at the heart of Spanish cycling.

''A study of a dominant force, a true gentleman racer despite his shadowy past'' Dan Martin

Alejandro Valverde - the ''Green Bullet'' - was an international symbol of Spanish cycling for a quarter of a century before his retirement in 2022. Hard-working and supremely talented, he won the Vuelta a Espa-a and stood on the podium of the Giro d''Italia and the Tour de France. World champion in 2018, he was also the world''s number-one-ranked rider four times. A man of indisputable charisma, he was also a convicted doping cheat.

When the Spanish police investigation, Operaci-n Puerto, uncovered a vast international blood doping ring, Valverde denied all involvement. The revelations unearthed by Operaci-n Puerto threatened to force cycling off the road.

Valverde''s long career was a high wi