'I never really had a Plan B' - Dan Martin on his cycling career and getting into running after retirement

Dan Martin is a British-Irish former professional cyclist. Martin won stages in all three of cycling’s Grand Tours, including two at the Tour de France, and he also won Liège–Bastogne–Liège and Il Lombardia. He retired from competition at the end of the 2021 season after riding for his final team, Israel-Premier tech.

This interview is part of Cycling Weekly’s Q&A series.

What was your first bike?

Well, the very first bike I had was just a steel frame of my granddad's that I inherited and we had resprayed. I got it when I was 12, and then I didn't start using it till I was about 14. It took me a while to actually want to use it I think, because I clipped in on Boxing Day, I then probably fell over and decided I didn't want to do any cycling. I was nearly 14 when I actually ended up properly starting out riding my bike.

What’s the first race you can remember watching?

Obviously, I spent a lot of time roadside watching my Dad [Neil Martin] race. But as far as television goes, it probably actually was the Tour de France in 1993, I don't know why. I've just got this clear image I remember of the leaders going up into the mist on one mountain stage, I think it was guys like Alex Zulle and Miguel Indurain.

Did you have a particular cycling hero when you were younger?

I have always liked climbers, Marco Pantani was probably the first one that I really liked. That was just for his style of riding and stuff.

Is there one single person who has been particularly influential on you and your career in cycling?

Obviously, my Dad was there and I was surrounded by cycling more than anything, and he's the biggest fan of the sport still now. So I just inherited that love of cycling from him I guess and I just wanted to do it because of him. And then as my career went on, I came across a lot of other people in the sport, but my Dad really played a key part in getting me on the bike in the first place.

What do you think you would have ended up doing if you hadn’t become a pro?

I have no idea, I really don't know. I was pretty good at school, so I would probably have gone to university and done something, but I really don't know what it would have been. I never really had a plan B, even though I had really good A levels and other qualifications and stuff. There was never any real plan B, I think if I had ever needed one then I would have figured one out.

What’s the best place your career has ever taken you to?

I used to love going to Japan for the Japan Cup. It's a really, really lovely trip. That was always a lot of fun and just a complete culture shock in the best way. I always loved racing Lombardia as well. It's just such a beautiful area on Lake Como, it's just amazing all round there and such a special place.

What was the most significant victory during your career and why?

Liège–Bastogne–Liège was really big for me. Obviously it's such an iconic race, and to step back now and think there's probably only about 80 people who've ever won it, and I'm one of them, is pretty surreal. It's something that doesn't dawn on you at the time, you don't really have time to reflect on it.

I think the problem is, when you're in the moment in cycling, as soon as I won Liege, it was almost like a case of thinking right, on to the next race. You don't really take time to enjoy it, or you just assume it's going to happen again, that feeling of winning.

I thought I'd win it again someday, I came really close, but I never managed to. I guess you never let yourself rest on your laurels, which I guess is why I continued to be successful throughout my career, but at the same time it means you don't always enjoy the moment to the full extent at the time.

Are you into any other sports?

My Dad used to work for one of the sponsors in MotoGP, so I used to follow MotoGP avidly when I was younger and I still do now. I used to play a lot of football at school and stuff too. I've always been a fan of pretty much all sports really.

Do you still ride your bike a lot now?

Over the course of this winter, I haven't really touched my bike actually. I'm running a lot now as my wife's starting to be competitive again. I've been training with her a fair bit and I'm running nearly every day now. I'm really enjoying it, I find it's just so much more efficient time wise. We've got the kids and I've got other things going on, so finding an hour to go for a run is a lot easier than doing a two or three hour ride these days.