But ‘Mr Indestructible’ – who had become the first Australian to win the Rock of Roubaix earlier that year – got back on his bike.By 2013 Stuart O’Grady had competed in 17 Tours; secured Olympic and Commonwealth Games medals; been named Australian Cyclist of the Year, and Australian Male Road Cyclist of the Year; won the inaugural Tour Down Under; and earned an Order of Australia Medal in recognition of his contribution to the sport. But then came the worst time of his life, when he announced his retirement after such an impressive cycling career and revealed that he had used the performance enhancing drug EPO before the 1998 Tour de France – a Tour marred by widespread doping.In this up-front and honest autobiography Stuey reveals all. This is his story: as candid and down-to-earth as the man himself.

    He saw the Tour for the first time in 1984, avidly following that year's race on television in the Normandy village where he lived. Since joining the Guardian in 1989, William Fotheringham has been at the forefront of British cycling journalism. Here he reflects on the events of the last twenty-three years - the triumphs, the tragedies and the scandals that have engulfed the world's most demanding sport. Key articles from his career are annotated with notes and reflections. What would he have said if he'd known then what we all know now about Lance Armstrong? Which cyclists and teams were not all they seemed? And which victories still rank as the greatest of all time?This is the definitive collection of cycling reporting.

    How does he do it? And why? What drives him to put his body through the physical and mental hurdles to become the best in the world? This is also the story of an extraordinary year in the life of an extraordinary sportsman, one which started with his best-ever world championships in Mallorca—where, for the first time in his career, he became a double world champion—continued with his attempt on the world kilometer record in La Paz, Bolivia, went on to Japan where he spent three months riding the crazy keirin circuit, before returning to training at the world-class Manchester velodrome in the buildup to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.By shadowing Hoy through a season with the British track cycling team, author Richard Moore has gained an unembellished insight into the mind of a world champion. He has also attained unprecedented levels of access to the key members of the all-conquering British team (which smashed all records and dominated the 2007 world championships) and support staff, including top coaches, world-renowned psychiatrists, doctors (where the subject of drug abuse is an ever-present shadow), and the pivotal characters behind the scenes. Combining his forensic knowledge of the cycling world with his acclaimed skills as a tenacious investigative journalist, Moore captures the mood of the British team and explores an area of professional sport that has rarely been seen before.

    From humble beginnings in a barn in Pennsylvania to soaring victories in the French Alps, Team 7-Eleven is the complete history that has never been fully told-until now.

    Only thirty-six Americans have competed in the Tour de France since the world’s greatest bicycle race began in 1903. That’s not too many more than the twelve Americans who have walked on the moon. It’s far fewer than the hundreds of Americans who have reached the summit of Mount Everest.But rising stars such as Lawson Craddock of Texas, Benjamin King of Virginia, Taylor Phinney of Colorado, Daniel Holloway of California, and Tyler Farrar of Washington state are doing just that as they endure crashes, cold rain, cobblestones, crosswinds, and culture shock on their road to cycling stardom, which starts in Belgium.This is the story of the next generation—of riders not yet tainted by drug scandals, of riders still bursting with hope and potential. This is the story American cycling fans need right now. -------------------“People, get ready for great stories written well. The Belgian Hammer captures cycling culture.” —Benjamin King, 2010 U.S. Pro Road Racing Champion“The Belgian Hammer is the unique story of professional cycling that hasn’t yet been told until now. Daniel Lee has revealed the road map for the next generation of Americans hoping to become successful in Europe, where cycling is king.” —Jim Ochowicz, President/General Manager of the BMC Racing Team.“All of us who left our tire prints on the European circuits remember how racing there shaped us forever. With passion, Daniel Lee gives substance and perspective to the experience of young Americans trying to make it in Europe; and bicycle racing is illuminated by his craft.”—John Howard, three-time Olympic cyclist, who set a bicycle speed record of 152.2 mph in 1985“For those who admire images of cyclists flashing with arms spread wide in triumph over the finish line on blue-sky days, Daniel Lee gives us an insightful, forceful, and gritty account of the rigorous―and frequently perilous―route that cyclists take to force their way up the ranks and develop skills to win. A former racer himself, Dan Lee puts his passion for the sport into his newspaper reporter experience and writing talent. In The Belgian Hammer he follows Taylor Phinney, Benjamin King, Daniel Holloway, and other legends in the making on the USA Cycling national team living in Belgium, where the young bloods from around the world go to test themselves against the best of their generation. They compete in tight packs exceeding 150 riders pumping over narrow wind-blown roads slick from rain while threading through the countryside at unrelenting speed. To spectators cycling matches the grace of ballet. Daniel Lee reveals its uncompromising demands and brutality and heroics.” ―Peter Joffre Nye, author of The Six-Day Bicycle Races: America’s Jazz Age Sport and a Trustee of the U.S. Bicycling Hall of Fame

    In his car were the drugs the team needed if they were to have any chance of playing a competitive part in the 1998 Tour de France. The car was searched, he was immediately arrested and so the story that has been undermining the sport of cycling since the death of Tommy Simpson in 1967, finally broke. Imprisoned for sixteen days, sacked from the Festina team and ostracised from the sport to which he had dedicated his life, Willy Voet at last was able to tell the truth. His sensational story will change cycling forever.Cocaine, amphetamines, EPO, heroin - all these are now considered not optional but necessary, not to win but just to compete in the Tour de France. Details of how these drugs are obtained, mixed together to make cocktails, administered and concealed are all included in this graphic and uninhibited account of how drugs brought cycling to its knees.

    And then there are the riders: men of almost superhuman capabilities, men who have become his friends, men whose stories he has written day in day out for the past decade. But even the biggest fan can one day wake up to find that he has lost his faith. Bad Blood is the story of Jeremy Whittle's journey from unquestioning fan to Tour de France insider and confirmed sceptic. It's about broken friendships and a sport divided; about having to choose sides in the war against doping; about how galloping greed and corporate opportunism have led the Tour de France to the brink of destruction. Part personal memoir, part devastating exposé of a sport torn apart by drugs and scandal, Bad Blood is a love letter to one man's past, and a warning to cycling's future.

    Matt Rendell's vivid and entertaining narrative of the Tour de France combines the Tour's golden legends with tales from its dark side, capturing the true and often surreal spirit of the world's most arduous race.

    Re-introduced to the Tour in 1976, Alpe d’Huez has risen to mythical status, thanks initially to a string of victories by riders from Holland, whose exploits attracted tens of thousands of their compatriots to the climb, which has become known as ‘Dutch mountain’. A snaking 13.8-kilometre ascent rising up through 21 numbered hairpins at an average gradient of 7.8%, Alpe d’Huez is the climb on which every great rider wants to win. Many of the sport’s most famous and now even infamous names have won on the Alpe, including Bernard Hinault, Joop Zoetemelk, Lucho Herrera, Marco Pantani and Lance Armstrong. As well as days of brilliance, there have controversies such as the high-speed and drug-fuelled duels of the EPO years in the 1990s and into the new millennium.  In Alpe d’Huez, veteran cycling journalist Peter Cossins reveals the triumphs, passion and despair behind the great exploits on the Alpe and discloses the untold details that have led to the mountain becoming as important to the Tour as the race is to resort at its summit. It is a tale of man and machine battling against breath-taking terrain for the ultimate prize.

    Among them is Sir Bradley Wiggins – a man uniquely placed to reflect on the history of this remarkable sport and its unforgettable titans.In Icons, Wiggins takes the reader on an extraordinarily intimate journey through the sport, presenting key pieces from his never-before-seen collection of memorabilia. Over the course of his illustrious career, he amassed hundreds of items – often gifts from its greatest and most controversial figures. Each reflects an icon, a race or a moment that fundamentally influenced Wiggins on both a personal and professional level.By exploring the lives and achievements of 21 of the sport’s key figures – among them Fausto Coppi, Jacques Anquetil, Miguel Induráin and Tom Simpson – Wiggins sheds new light on what professional cycling demands of its best competitors. Icons lauds their triumphs, elucidates their demons and sheds light on the philosophy and psychology that comprise the unique mindset of a cycling champion.

    

    When Elizabeth Beisel watched the Olympics on television for the first time, she was seven years old in her parents’ living room. She decided right then and there she would compete at the Olympic Games one day. Eight years later, she made her first of three Olympic Teams as a fifteen-year-old. Despite her huge success in the sport, Elizabeth struggled with doubts, failures, and injuries throughout her entire swimming career. In Silver Lining, she he gives a compelling look inside the pressures that come with being an Olympian, and how she mentally conquered the stress of competing at the highest level for over a decade. From a small-town girl with a dream, to winning Olympic medals, Elizabeth gives you a glimpse inside her life as you’ve never seen it before. She is relatable, open, and honest, and her storytelling in Silver Lining> will leave you feeling emotional and inspired to pursue your own dreams, no matter who you are.  Reviews “Silver Lining is a story of amazing perseverance of one of the greatest leaders in our sports history.” – Rowdy Gaines “You will be inspired, and also discover why Elizabeth is one of the most respected athletes to grace a pool deck for Team USA.” – Katie Ledecky “Elizabeth wonderfully captures what it means to be an elite athlete. Silver Lining shows how perseverance, dedication, and a support team can help one overcome life’s biggest obstacles.” – Caeleb Dressel About the Author Elizabeth Beisel is a three-time Olympic swimmer and two-time Olympic medalist for the United States of America. Visit her at www.elizabethbeisel.com.

    This story brings alive the romance of the great races and star riders of those post war days whose exploits lifted the public spirit after years of conflict and economic hardship.

    

    At the Tour de France, he has taken the coveted green jersey three times. He spent his teen years winning just about every possible title for his age group at BMX, before discovering road cycling at 18. McEwen soon established himself as one of the foremost road sprinters of his generation. He took his first ever stage win at the Tour de France in the celebrated final stage of the race in 1999, on the Champs Elyseés. But it was between 2002 and 2007 that he had claim to being the fastest sprinter in the world. McEwen is renowned for being a forthright character, a favorite among fans, and respected by his competitors. Few cyclists have ever approached the sport in such a detailed way, and few have been as competitive. He now rides for Lance Armstrong's RadioShack team, still competing at the very highest level.