'Keeps me on my toes': Tom Pidcock praises mountain bike rivals that keep driving him forward
Olympic champion Tom Pidcock continues to dominate the mountain biking world whenever he dips his toe in, but has praised the rising level of competition for motivating him to keep pushing.
On Sunday, Pidcock - who is now primarily a road race with Pinatello Q36.5 Pro Cycling - dropped in on the Men Elite XCO round of the UCI Mountain Bike World Series in the Czech Republic and promptly triumphed.
Racing on one of the most iconic and demanding circuits in modern cross-country mountain biking, the 26-year-old Yorkshireman who won Olympic mountain bike gold in Tokyo and Paris, attacked on lap two, stretching the race with his relentless pace.
From there, the former mountain bike world champion, never let his rivals have a sniff with explosive climbing and precision on the descents.
“I think that was the hardest one I've done,” said Pidcock, a winner of multiple World Cup races.
“I didn't make it easy for myself. I had a really good start and I was probably a bit too keen in the first laps. I knew that was a point where everyone was kind of showing themselves a little bit and I thought, I will test the water and see what happens.”
Pidcock has had three wins on the road for this season, but one of the main reasons for leaving Ineos nearly 18 months ago to join Pinarelli Q 36.5 Pro Cycling was the freedom they afforded him to carry on pursuing his passion for mountain biking and other pursuits.
And in the field where he is a double Olympic champion, he is revelling in the rising standards.
“My fitness is good, but when I haven't done many races, I need to be a bit more cautious than perhaps in another part of the season” he explained.
“I think it shows everyone is pushing, everyone is getting better and stronger. The level of the sport keeps getting higher and higher.
“It keeps me on my toes because I can't rest on my laurels. These guys are working just as hard.”
Advancements in equipment and technology made by his team are also aiding Pidcock.
The upper section of Pidcock’s Q36.5 skinsuit uses the same advanced materials featured in the Q36.5 Dottore Clima skinsuits currently being raced at the Giro d’Italia, transferring proven WorldTour-level thermoregulation and breathability technology directly into the extreme demands of modern cross-country mountain biking.
It also carried a uniquely symbolic design: the European Champion’s flag across the chest, the rainbow heritage of a former world champion and the gold detailing of an Olympic champion.