As he gets used to life in retirement, the Irish rider talks about the unhealthy demands of professional cycling
“There were moments when I was in France and I was like: ‘Maybe they’re right, maybe I should stop eating,’” Dan Martin says as he remembers an early example of him refusing to surrender to the unhealthy demands of professional cycling. Martin, who recorded top‑10 finishes at five Grand Tours and won stages at the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España, had been rejected by Dave Brailsford and British Cycling despite being a national junior champion. He turned pro in France instead where he soon discovered a sport in which cyclists are often treated as machines rather than human beings.
After Martin won the Valle d’Aosta time trial in 2006 his road captain said: “Imagine what you would be capable of if you were two kilos lighter.” Martin also recalls “scary sayings like ‘eating is cheating’”.
Written by Donald McRae
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2022/oct/17/dan-martin-cycling-is-quite-boring-to-watch-it-has-become-prescriptive under the title “Dan Martin: ‘Cycling is quite boring to watch. It has become prescriptive’”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
