My first thank you is to my competitors and rivals throughout my career. From Jo Lally, aged 11, through to Marianne Vos, who succeeded me as World No.1 and Olympic champion: I couldn’t have had the career, the fun and the ups and downs without any of you. Sometimes I won, more often I lost. There is nothing I loved more than a rival who would not give me an inch. I just loved fighting to the bitter end, the victory or even the defeat that took a photo finish to separate us. Those memories are still in full technicolor and supersonic sound in my brain right now. My heart beats faster just thinking about them. Thank you, all of you.
Secondly, I asked a few of the people close to me and who stuck by me every inch of the way, if they wanted a paragraph or a page of thanks. I even showed them what I had written. Every one of them said ‘no’; Mum said it made her toes curl and she ripped it up. I have tried not to forget anyone, and if I have, it’s not because I don’t love you, it’s because writing this book has driven me crazy. So in alphabetical order by surname, here they go:
Nonna Marcella Albanese, Peter Baker, Fabio Bartalucci, Marcus Baumann, Cathie & Mick Beckingham, Sue Belcher, Darryl Benson, Aristide Beretta Piccoli, Dave Bishop, Prue & John Bishop, Charlie Botero, Steve Bunce, Leonie Burford, Cardiff Ajax CC, Paola Casanova, Shelly Childs and all at Continental, Colnago family, Matt Cosgrove, Cooke family, Steve Cottrell, Del DelaRonde, Claire Dixon & family, John Donnelly, Fran Donovan, Tobi Doppler, Ron Dowling, Tony Doyle, Martin Eadon, Anne Ellis, Dan Ellmore, Rhiannon Evans, Maurizio Fabretto, CJ Farquharson, Brendan Gallagher, Lorenza Gentilini, Silke Gersbach, Giancarlo Ghillioni, Mauro Giacomazzi, Tiziana Goffo, Emma Grant (née Rickards), Geoff Greenfield, Wayne Greenhaulgh, Primo Grespan, Wyn Griffiths, Sally Harlin (née Hodge), Imad Harmoush, Rachel Heal, Richard Hendicott, Larry Hickmott, Marcus Höss, Bob Humphrys, Alessandro Ippoliti, Mick Ives, Caroline & Matthew Jackson, Dr Rod Jacques, Louise & Phil Jones, Jon Kilmartin, Haider Knall, Laquaniti family, Fany Lecourtois, Alison Livesey, McClelland family, Gianni Maffei, Daphne Major, Marco Mariotti, Roberto Merlo, Jon Miles, Shirley Myall, Andrea Natali, Phil O’Connor, Richard Owen, Mario Penariol, Dr Steve Peters, Andi Pfister, Arlette Pfister, Pinarello family, Cliff Polton, Chris Price, John Pritchard, Hayden Rees, Millie & Field Rickards, Walter Rixon, Judith & Brian Rourke and all at Brian Rourke Cycles, Courtney Rowe, Celestino Salami, Katherine Selby, Bill Snowdon, Stuart Thom, Gayle Thrush, Davina & Mike Townley, Francis & Keith Townley, Peter Valentine, Andy Walser, Deborah Walsh, Mr Jonathan Webb, Alex Wharton, Debbie Wharton, Derek Williams, Gareth Williams, Helen Williams, Steven Worley-James, Margaret & Gordon Wright, Helen & Stefan Wyman, Marco Wyser, Yerby (mum’s) family, Giorgio Zauli, Federico Zecchetto.