Cycling UK Forum

Axel Merckx wanted to do things Eddy did not manage, win a stage at the Alpe d'huez, Paris-Tours. He was not quite as good as his dad, although he surely had lots of help and support
Peter Sagan kept the rainbow jersey again, won Paris-Roubaix &c &c. His older brother rides with him as a domestique

What makes the difference? Why are some so much more successful?

You don't have to look at too many siblings to realise genetics can deal you a very different hand. My older brother has always been intrinsically fitter, faster and generally better at sport than me and most of that's physiology. I'm not bad at sport, but he's better. Katie Archibald wrote something on her blog a while ago undermining the "if I can do it, you can do it" thing, pointing out you've got to have the basic right body to start with before you add the training etc.

Beyond that there's the mind game, and at top level you've got to have that too: there are clearly different approaches to a winning mindset (some appear healthier than others), but at the end of the day you've got to have some sort of mental edge that just lets you push that bit harder/further/longer. All sorts of things in life might make the difference there.

Pete.

My son rode as a UK Professional, winning several national championship medals. He rode the World Cyclo cross Championship as a junior. He's done a 55 for 25 miles and a 20 minute 10 mile. I am an eternal 3rd/4th category rider, and I've never beaten the hour for 25. We have similar physical attributes, but he has a mental strength and fortitude that I don't have, possibly from his mother's side. In short, he knows how to hurt himself.

Difference?
Maybe one knew doping was cheating, Eddy Merckx, the biggest dope cheat in cycling history.

The utility cyclist wrote:Difference?
Maybe one knew doping was cheating, Eddy Merckx, the biggest dope cheat in cycling history.

Maybe but Axel rode for T mobile in the Ulrich era. http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/french- ... de-france/

I know that, and yet pop won everything in sight, as I said maybe the difference, the lack of success was he wanted to ride clean even in an era of doping. Maybe his only successes came when he decided the only way he might win something WAS to dope hence only 2 victories and a bronze at the olympics late in his career. Maybe he did it clean who knows but from nowhere to a stage win a national champs and a bronze looks like going from a no-one to a decent rider.
Maybe if he'd doped like pop he'd have a bigger palmares.
One thing is for sure in an era of limited testing pop was caught at 3 of the biggest races and dq'd plus also caught at a smaller race. That's 4 times and all denied despite retesting. Merckx was a bullying dope cheat, that's the difference IMO.

Maybe if he'd doped like pop, he'd have been banned. While not clean, things were tighter than previously, which probably made it less blatant.

Are the twins identical?

Cyril Haearn wrote:Are the twins identical?

Yes - well apart from the crash scars of course!

Cyril Haearn wrote:Are the twins identical?

One is older than the other?

Maybe a few minutes

My theory is, they have exactly the same capabilities and are smart too
One races in California, the other in Europe, they need not race against each other and can both win lots
Good for family harmony too