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n<br />
.<br />
it was always for me and how far I could go. Now it’s for my family, my children.<br />
How proud I can make them and how I can fundamentally give them the best life I<br />
can manage.<br />
The world has changed with older athletes like Nadal and Federer still at their<br />
peaks as they approach their 40s and Floyd Mayweather is still fighting at 42.<br />
What is giving more mature athletes the ability to perform at their best?<br />
I think experience definitely helps you see things with a more measured<br />
perspective. Science and innovation have changed a lot of sports, particularly<br />
cycling, over the last 10 to 15 years, but maturity for sure helps with working out<br />
how to adapt to those changes, even if the actual adaptation can be a little bit<br />
more difficult.<br />
Two of your best friends and lead-out men, Mark Renshaw and Bernhard Eisel,<br />
have recently retired. Was it hard to see them go? How do you forge similar<br />
relationships with new teammates?<br />
Oof. I joke now that I know more team personnel and race organizers than riders<br />
in the peloton! Everyone I’ve shared my career with has come to the end. But that’s<br />
professional sport. The proudest thing is that I have made lifelong friends, not just<br />
ridden with work colleagues. For me, I think teams always work better if there’s a<br />
genuine relationship between the people, not just out performing a job.<br />
McLaren collaborated on a Venge for you, but this time [the company] is<br />
applying expertise in performance metrics and telemetry. What do you think<br />
the critical advantage will be?<br />
What McLaren does best is think outside the box. Even though there’ve been<br />
96 BACK TO THE FUTURE
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