New in Paper
An inside look at the 2003 Tour de France through the eyes of Lance Armstrong's right-hand rider, Victor Hugo Peņa--who also helped Armstrong ride to his unprecedented sixth victory in 2004. Peņa served as Armstrong's domestique, a crucial yet unsung position unique to cycling. The domestique handles a variety of tasks, but his most important is to ride ahead of the team leader, creating a wind tunnel that makes it aerodynamically easier for the "star" to continue pedaling. This is the essence of cycling, and the key to Armstrong's victories. Now, in revealing the true role of the domestique for the first time, Matt Rendell gives a more vivid and insightful portrayal of professional cycling than ever before.
MATT RENDELL survived Hodgkin's Disease and lecturing at British and Latvian universities before entering TV and print journalism. He has written for the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, including British coverage of the Tour de France, and he edited The Tour de France Centennial 1903-2003 (Weidenfeld and Nicolson 2003). The National Sporting Club named Matt Rendell 'Best New Sports Writer 2003'