MANUEL QUINZIATO

The retiring BMC rider discusses spirituality, the perfect retirement and his best day on a bike

My experience with professional cycling is complete.

I’ve been focused on giving my all to the last few races of my career and I’ve enjoyed it, but I would not do one more day. I think it’s priceless to finish on good terms and a good level. It’s beautiful if you’re good, but if you’re bad it’s the worst sport ever because the races and the season are so long.

Last year I became a certified UCI rider agent.

I’ve known for the last 10 years of my career that’s what I was going to do. My agent Giovanni Lombardi has been helpful. He is about the only agent who says no to clients – I like his ethos – and last year he asked me when I was going to retire. He said if I promised it was the end of this year then he’d suggest to some of the riders to work with me. So I said yes.

As a rider I got better as I matured.

From an economic point of view, being good when you’re young is better for your pay because you increase your salary early and you make more money. At the same time I was better in these last four or five years. I’m cool with that.

If I was better, it’s because I had a spiritual awakening in the last five years.

I got into Buddhism and started identifying as one a couple of years ago. Being Buddhist means observing and verifying your consciousness and your reaction to everything that happens around you. It makes you a better human and if you ride a bike, a better cyclist.

Spirituality is so important for the human mind.

As Einstein said: “Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.” I am a man of science and what got me close to Buddhism was the unbelievably scientific approach it allows. The religion is so open. There is no dogma. There are the teachings of the Buddha but he is the first to say that his wisdom will never be mine. That means we have to find our way and explore.

Now I now freak out a lot less.

It’s about meditation, which helps you think less, and if you think less you’re more focused on what you’re doing. I’m calmer and more aware that being angry and nervous is going to make me a slower cyclist. It’s like Bruce Lee said: “Be water, my friend, because water can flow, water can crash.” Water goes with the flow.

The best moment was winning the stage of the Eneco Tour over the Muur in 2015.

A close friend of mine had a part to play. He naturally tries to make everybody give their best. We had dinner before the Eneco Tour and he gave me s**t for an hour and a half about never winning. I left the dinner with broken bones! I came seventh in the TT and he phoned me up and had another go. He told me: “It doesn’t matter what happens but you have to finish totally spent – unable even to walk to the podium.”

That Sunday I won the stage.

I was really working on visualisation techniques at the time and with 20km to go, when I was in the break, I was just so sure I was going to win the race. I was already thinking of taking a screenshot of the finish photo and sending it to my friend. With 400m to go I said to myself: “I win or die”, and I won by three seconds. I sent him that photo straight away. His reply? “What’s your next race?”

The one person I have to thank for my whole career is Dario Broccardo.

He’s been with me the last nine years. I have a very strong relationship with him. He’s almost like a dad to me and he’s unbelievable to work with. When I’m going badly I call him and 30 minutes later I have 50 watts back because he always has the right words.

I’m going on a pilgrimage in October to Nepal and India.

I think it’ll be really good to help reorder my priorities and become the best rider agent in history.