Cycling: Nico Denz has had an exciting season. The 2-year-old competed in his first Grand Tour this year for the French Équipe AG23R LA MONDIALE. Velomotion got the opportunity to ask him a few exciting questions. He looks back with us on the last few months - and of course a little bit into the future.
"For me, the winter is without competitions"
Nico, first the most important question: How are you doing after the exhausting season?
"So far so good. I was able to recover well and switch off a bit during the break.”
What does your winter timetable look like? Many pros switch to the track during the colder months to stay in competitive mode.
“For me, the winter is without competitions. I will mainly pass by on my bike, but I will also do targeted strength training in the gym. In addition, I also like to go jogging.”
You yourself spoke of a bad season in an interview. To what extent can you classify a season as good or bad if you start most races as a helper and are not allowed to drive on your own account?
“Purely in terms of earnings, the yield this year was extremely meager. Of course you shouldn't forget that my tasks for the team mostly take place in the first half of the race and that it's difficult to get a result in advance. But in general I felt like I wasn't able to show what I could have and wasn't quite up to my level. There are years when everything just happens by itself and the good moments just keep coming up, and then there are years when you just have the feeling that you're not really gaining momentum. That was the case for me this year.”
"Romain is a true workhorse"
Is it hard to keep motivated when you can't add results to your resume? Of course, it is also your merit if a teammate wins a race with your help, but this achievement does not appear in your palmarès.
“I'm a team player through and through, so I don't mind working in the shadows. We also have great leaders who recognize this work. On the other hand, of course, there is also self-confidence when you can achieve a result yourself. But I always get the opportunity to go in groups. Then I can play my own card.”
Your team's captain is Romain Bardet. The French have been dreaming of a local tour winner for years. How would you describe him? What makes him so strong? Do you think he's capable of the big hit in 2018?
“Romain is really a great guy. He is not too bad for anything and extremely approachable. Romain is also a real workhorse. He leaves nothing to chance and works on even the smallest detail. So I trust him to be at the top. Whether that will be the case in 2018, I cannot say.”
How do you follow the Tour de France if you don't ride it yourself?
"Every day in front of the TV."
yesssss 💪🏼
great @romainbardet— Nico Denz (@NicoDenz) July 13, 2017
"Fear of existence is not an issue for me"
What does your everyday training routine look like in general? Where do you often travel? Which training partners do you have? And what influence does your team have on your training?
“My daily training routine is not always the same. But mostly for me it starts with 30-40 minutes roll before breakfast. It continues with short trunk strengthening training immediately before I go on the bike. If my motivation isn't lost in the evening, stretching is a must. I train a lot with Jay Thompson from Team Dimension Data and two other local amateurs. Most of the time I'm out and about on the High Rhine. When the weather permits, I like to go to the Black Forest. My team steers the entire training via a team trainer with whom I am in regular contact. After training, I then upload my SRM file to the team's online platform so my data can be analyzed.”
You have extended your contract with Ag2r by two years and thus have planning security for the coming months. How important is something like that for a young professional cyclist? Especially now that the squads are probably getting smaller because the number of riders in the Grand Tours has also been reduced. Does the existential fear always accompany you?
"Especially when things don't go as planned, it's important to get the team's trust. So far I am very satisfied. Fear of existence is not an issue for me and I got the green light from the team relatively early on. But you must never forget that cycling is not everything in life.”
physical training @NicoDenz @OisansT #Vaujany pic.twitter.com/6D6nqIqN8b
— AG2RLM Cyclisme (@AG2RLMCyclisme) 14 November 2017
"A Grand Tour is much more structured"
You completed a major national tour for the first time this season. Unfortunately you weren't allowed to finish it. But what experiences have you had so far? Does a Grand Tour feel completely different than a week-long smaller tour?
“Above all, you learn to save grains where possible. In principle, a Grand Tour is much more structured than a one-week tour, because in the final everyone takes it out to save energy. The Grupetto is formed in solidarity and quickly, although on shorter tours the fight to catch up is much longer.”
This year you knew very early on that the Vuelta was on the agenda. When will you be notified when you need to be on top form in 2018? Are dates already known?
“So far, the only certainty is that I will start the season in Australia. A rough outline for the first half of the season is already in place, but which races it will be exactly cannot be said at this point in time. But there will definitely be one or two classics again.”
do you have a role model Is or was there a driver who matches your driving style and thus gives you an incentive to make it this far yourself?
“On the one hand there is Jens Voigt. With its classic fighter driving style, it goes very much in my direction. But also Bradley Wiggins, who showed how you can steel and transform your body if you work hard enough.”