Tour de France vet blasts Lance

SYDNEY – It was an unexpected tirade from the man who preceded Cadel Evans as Australia’s No. 1 cyclist. Brad McGee, 37, minced no words in lashing out at disgraced American rider Lance Armstrong during an open forum with the visiting La Salle senior men’s basketball coaches at the New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) here the other day.

“I lived in Nice and Armstrong close by, also in France, when we were racing in Europe,” said McGee. “I think he’s arrogant and big-headed. No surprises from him. He was about winning at all costs but that’s not good enough. There are limits, too. He’s just a special guy.”

Armstrong won seven Tour de France titles from 1999 to 2005 but the championships were later revoked after he was found to be using illegal drugs. McGee, a five-time Tour de France campaigner, never took a championship but managed to win several legs. He won the Tour de France prologue in 2003 and led three days. In 2004, he wore the leader’s pink jersey for a day and the next year, donned the golden jersey for topping four laps.

At the Olympics, McGee took two bronze medals in the individual and team pursuit in 1996, a bronze in pursuit in 2000 and a gold medal in the team pursuit with a record time of 3:58.333 and a silver in the 4,000-meter pursuit in 2004.

McGee raced as an amateur at the 1996 Olympics then turned pro two years later. He competed in three more Olympics as a pro. In 2005, McGee was awarded the Order of Australia medal. He is a member of the Champions for Peace movement, a group of 54 famous elite athletes committed to serving peace in the world through sports.

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Although a cycling specialist, McGee said he also coaches women’s water polo and swimming at NSWIS. “We’re a multi-sport institution,” said McGee. “What I apply to cyclists, I also apply to other athletes in different sports. When I went to NSWIS for testing and basic training, it was just a small entity. It’s grown considerably over the last 10 years.”

As a pro, McGee lived 11 years in Europe, campaigning in France and Denmark. “I was a directeur sportif which means coach and manager,” he said. “In Europe, we had an annual budget of about 15 Million Euros. In Australia, our budget is roughly $400,000. It’s a big challenge to attain results. In cycling, we get over 350 days of racing in a year. At the Tour de France, you get over 220 riders. We start out at 8 a.m. and finish at 10 p.m. and by then, we’re drained. The Tour de France runs three weeks and is extensively covered by international media. Australia, Europe, USA, Canada and Asia are going full-gas on their efforts to promote cycling. The only month where there aren’t too many cycling events is November. At NSWIS, we train about 25 riders and 17 or 18 show up every day. We want our riders to embrace cycling as a lifestyle.”

McGee said in today’s modern world, talent isn’t enough to make a successful athlete. “We look at social values, too,” he said. “At NSWIS, our biomechanics structure is probably second to none. Our facilities are the best in the world even considering the facilities of Italy, Monaco and France. We’ve got the bell, whistle, equipment and personnel to back up our claim. We’ve got highly competent strength and conditioning coaches and physiotherapists. Our velodrome is about 10 kilometers away from the NSWIS offices.”

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In coaching, McGee said the only limitation is creativity. “Compared to our resources in Europe, we’ve got a small budget in Australia but we’re expected to deliver top results, transforming young athletes to evolve as pros,” he said. “Coaching is a demanding job. Communication is essential. As a coach, you’ve got to be creative and appreciate time constraints. From Day 1, you’ve got to offer clear solutions to every athlete with a concern.”

McGee suggested things to keep in mind in motivating athletes. “Be with them, sweating it out in the gym, know where they’re at in terms of education and career development,” he said. “In coaching females, it’s important to clear game planning. The effort must come from within. You can’t draw blood from stone. From the onset, an athlete must know his performance plan and answer questions like why are doing what you’re doing, are you enjoying and how much did you put in? You’ve got to know how far to push an athlete.”

McGee, who started cycling in 1986 at the age of 10, said next year’s Commonwealth Games will be a huge test for Australian athletes. “As a matter of policy, a national cycling team has six riders,” he said. “To prepare for the future, at least one of the riders is required to be under-23 for development purposes.” At the 1994 Commonwealth Games, McGee gained gold medals in the individual and team pursuit. In the 1998 version, McGee repeated to top both events. And at the 2002 Commonwealth Games, McGee said he did it the hard way as he took the gold in the individual pursuit.