Bernhard Eisel is one of the most respected and experienced riders in the modern peloton.
At 37, he has raced alongside the likes of Philippe Gilbert, Fabian Cancellara, Mark Cavendish and Bradley Wiggins.
Now the road captain at Dimension Data, and with a career spanning almost two decades, the Austrian sat down with Cyclingnews' Daniel Benson at September's Canadian WorldTour races to open up about the races that have left their greatest impression.
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Bevilacqua 2000
One of the most life-changing races for me came in 2000 when I won the Bevilacqua in Italy. I had come back from a big crash – one that wasn't too dissimilar from my fall in Tirreno-Adriatico earlier this year. In my first races back in 2000, I was scared shitless of being in the bunch because my front forks had snapped in training, and I couldn't shake that memory from my head.
I'd split my face open, lost some teeth, and to be honest it wasn't an easy recovery period. I abandoned a number of races during my comeback, but I won Bevilacqua ahead of Alessandro Ballan, I think, and that was my ticket to turning pro.
At the time I was with a small team – an under-23 squad in Italy that was actually a feeder for Roslotto – but winning that race was my introduction to Mapei. Suddenly I was on their radar, and that win opened the doors for me when I was just 19 years old.
Vuelta a Cuba 2002
Gent-Wevelgem 2010
Tour de France 2012
Tirreno-Adriatico 2018
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest Interviews and Features http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/bernhard-eisel-the-five-races-that-changed-my-life
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