There will be something missing from next year’s WorldTour. A Peter Sagan-shaped hole is set to open up as the enigmatic Slovak retires from top-level road racing. He won’t be gone completely though – he is staying on to target the mountain bike race in the Paris Olympics next year.
“You cannot put a lion in a cage,” says Sagan’s old boss at Bora-Hansgrohe, Ralph Denk. He was talking about letting the Slovak off the leash to enjoy mountain biking or skiing. But with Sagan’s recent retirement from the WorldTour, it feels like that metaphor has never been more apt. The ultimate uncaging.
Over the course of a wildly successful pro career Sagan, now 33, has earned the nicknames ‘Rambo’ and ‘the Terminator’, conjuring an image of someone you’d probably run a mile from before asking for an autograph.
And while as a pro rider trying to win races, Sagan was definitely not someone you would want to encounter at the sharp end of a tough one-dayer or a bunch sprint, his contemporaries paint a picture of a soft-spoken, diligent and sometimes playful person – not scary, at least until you tried to beat him to the line.
Oliver Naesen, who was a key rival for Sagan during the Slovak’s halcyon period, describes him as having “silent class”.
“He wasn’t a screamer,” says the Belgian Ag2r-Citroën rider, who has podiumed in races including Milan-San Remo, Ghent-Wevelgem and E3. "Even though he had the funky hair and, you know, the ski goggles and the podiums and all that.
この記事は Cycling Weekly の November 23, 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Cycling Weekly の November 23, 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
Claud Butler Criterium
A classic British brand ridden by beginners and Olympians alike
Dr Hutch
At what point does a bold show of strength become brazen showboating? The Doc ponders the etiquette of the long solo break
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT...CBD
From reducing pain to promoting relaxation and sleep, myriad are the claims made for cannabidiol but do they stack up? Rob Kemp finds out
Van Rysel D900
Andy Turner discovers whether Decathlon's high-spec, low-price smart trainer can compete with the likes of Wahoo, Tacx and Elite
What prep does my bike need for summer?
Pro bike mechanic Glen Whittington shares his tips for the successful de-hibernation of your bike
2024 GIRO D'ITALIA
Attention turns to Italy and 21 days of Grand Tour action
Pogačar's dominance at the Giro could be dull
While I may have been a little young to understand the full romance of the Tour de France during the Armstrong era, I never understood the sentiment that it was boring just because of Lance's dominance.
Team GB's Paris Olympics track bike launched
BC reveals the bike that it hopes will power riders to medals in Paris this summer
Romandie victory marks Ineos return to stage race success
Carlos Rodríguez wins British team's first WorldTour stage race since 2022, writes Adam Becket
Is pro racing getting more dangerous?
There are many factors that contribute to the perceived greater risks. One that does not get any attention is the greater importance of UCI points and the need to constantly collect them to avoid relegation.