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Description

'It is impossible to win everything he has won' – Tadej Pogacar

'Merckx … is in a class by himself' – Jacques Anquetil

A UNIQUE ACCOUNT OF MERCKX'S DOMINANCE OF CYCLING, WITH PREVIOUSLY UNTOLD ANECDOTES AND MEMORIES.

WITH AN AFTERWORD BY EDDY MERCKX.

For over 50 years, Eddy Merckx has reigned supreme as the greatest cyclist of all time, winning every bike race going: Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, La Vuelta, The Monuments, World Championships and the Hour Record. With Tadej Pogacar's recent exploits inviting comparison with the man they called the 'Cannibal', this book looks back at Merckx's incredible lifetime of racing, and of his insatiable appetite for victory which won him over 500 races.

Former L'Équipe journalist Guy Roger has traversed Europe to talk to the officials and journalists who were there, to interview Merckx's former adversaries and teammates, and to reveal their accounts of racing with and against him.

Filled with anecdotes and previously untold memories, the book also looks back at the surreal Merckx years through the eyes of some of his greatest admirers such as Ned Boulting, Carlton Kirby, Nige Tassell, Andy McGrath and Phil Cavell. Eddy Merckx himself looks back at his life in a moving afterword, making this the ultimate celebration of a truly fascinating man.

Table of Contents

Preface by Bernard Thévenet
Kemzeke
Woluwe – Saint-Pierre
La Cipale, Once
La Cipale, Twice
Orcières-Marseille-Menté
La Cipale, Fourth
La Cipale, Last
Pra-Loup
Alpe D'huez, 19 July 1977
Italy, Love and Betrayal
Savona
Orduña, 14 May 1973
San Remo
Meerbeke
Roubaix
Liège
Lombardy
Heerlen, Mendrisio, Montreal
49.431 Km
Opponents Interviews
Team-Mates Interviews
'What's Your Wattage?'
Successors
Inaccessible
Afterword by Eddy Merckx
Appendices
Acknowledgements
Index

Product details

Published Jul 21 2026
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Pages 304
ISBN 9781399430005
Imprint Bloomsbury Sport
Illustrations Black and white images throughout
Dimensions 234 x 153 mm
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

Guy Roger

Guy Roger is a former journalist at L'Équipe and s…

Contributor

Ned Boulting

Ned Boulting began his television career in 1997 w…

Contributor

Carlton Kirby

Carlton Kirby is the principal cycling commentator…

Contributor

Phil Cavell

Phil Cavell is joint founder of the pioneering Cyc…

Contributor

Andy McGrath

Andy McGrath is an award-winning freelance sports…

Contributor

Nige Tassell

Nige Tassell has written an ever-growing list of b…

Translator

Roland Hall

Foreword

Eddy Merckx

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