In the latest installment of our 10 Questions series, Escape Collective I caught up with Bora-Hansgrohe’s Daniel Martinez, fresh from his runner-up finish in the Giro d’Italia.
Since the 2020 Tour de France, the 28-year-old Colombian has already won a Grand Tour stage and now stood on a Grand Tour podium, and he spoke to us about his unique worldview, his love for Colombian cuisine, what it felt like to be attacked by Tadej Pogačar, and more.
Dane Cash: What is your pre-race ritual?
Daniel Martinez: When the race starts, I do a mix of meditation and prayer every morning because I have a strong belief in God. That’s my ritual. If I [specific] I don’t have any religious beliefs, but I’m very attached to it and I really like the way the Jews express their religion, I really like the way they teach and the way they believe in God.
Direct current: What is the most memorable moment of the most memorable day in your career?
DM: Definitely what I did in the Giro. To be on the podium in Rome is a very special day for me because for us climbers, the riders who can win one-week races and do well in three-week Grand Tours, to go there and be on the podium of a Grand Tour is very special…
It was amazing because I’d been trying so hard for years to do well and be on the podium in a Grand Tour and it had never happened. So this Giro d’Italia was special for me. 21 days, every day was so hard, so stressful, painful and cold. So to be on the podium gives me a sense of calm, like a job well done…
My whole family was in Rome that day – my parents, my wife, our kids – and the next day we visited Rome and celebrated with them, sightseeing, going to restaurants and drinking wine.
Direct current: Speaking of the Giro, here’s another Giro question: What was the conversation going on within the group when Tadej Pogačar attacked?
DM: Actually, most of the time when Pogacar attacks, I expect to beat him. And I can beat him. But actually, on the stage in Monte Grappa, I was like, “Today I want to fight for the stage win.” He was coming at me at a really fast pace, and in the last few minutes I was already [Pogačar’s teammate Rafał] When Majka was pulling, I was thinking: Pogačar is going to attack, he’s doing well, but he’s not quite there yet. So I was waiting to see how strong Pogačar would come out. [be] On the first wheel. I was already at my limit when I saw Pogačar come out, but when he attacks he comes out so fast. It’s practically like an explosion. It’s almost impossible, you know? I mean, when he attacks it devastates me mentally, because I’m already at my limit and that attack is so powerful.
So, for us, that moment was probably the best time to think of it as another Giro d’Italia. Pogačar was racing against time, the wind, the mountains and the records. We were… [Geraint Thomas] was there, [Ben] O’Connor was there, [Antonio] Tiberi was there too. For us it was another Giro d’Italia.
Direct current: Looking back to the beginning of your career, when did you first realize you wanted to become a professional cyclist?
DM: I think I was a junior when I went to the World Championships in Tuscany in Florence in 2013. We were all there and I was racing with the Colombian national team, and they had some elite riders on the national team like Nairo. [Quintana], [Carlos] Betancourt, Rigo [Urán]a pretty major team, right? At that time, I thought that if I was here and Colombia chose me to come here as a representative in the junior category, I would have a chance to go pro. Seeing all the pros sharing with us, chatting with us and training with us, it gave me motivation and made me think that maybe I could go pro too.
Direct current: Is there a rider in the current pack that you would like to be more like in terms of personality or skill?
DM: I really respect G now. G is a rider who has been very consistent in the Grand Tours. I had the opportunity to be teammates with him and I respect him a lot because he is a very good person. As a cyclist he is very professional. Also, the number of victories he has won is quite large. Also, his age, it is not easy to reach the same level at 38 years old. So G is an exemplary rider.
Direct current: Apart from PE, what was your best subject at school? And what do you think you’d be doing if you weren’t involved in cycling?
DM: I was a good student. I liked math and I was good at it. But I was particularly interested in politics and social sciences, which included national history, and I liked a bit of history. If I wasn’t working, [cycling]I think I am very interested in philosophy and psychology.
Direct current: If your friends were to describe your personality without talking about cycling, what would they say?
DM: I think they would say that… I don’t know, but I consider myself a good friend, an advisor. And sometimes I’m a little bit conservative. I analyze a lot. I’m very analytical about everything that has to do with decision making. What would happen if I did something, or what would happen if I didn’t do it? I’m very analytical about this. From there, I start analyzing what’s best for me. This analysis, this ideology, or introspection that I do with myself, I start applying it to my friends. And then they start seeing things in a different light.
Direct current: Is there anything you would like your fans to know more about the life of a professional cyclist?
DM: There are many things. For example, my personal life with my children. [Martínez has a five-year-old and a two-year-old – Ed.]You get up early in the morning, you take the kids to school, you give them a bath, or your mom gives them a bath, you make breakfast, you take them to school, and then, of course, you come home, you eat, you go to work out, and then in the afternoon, you know what? You come home in the afternoon, you pick up the kids from school, and then your life becomes very family-centered. And this is something that not many people talk about, but life with kids is complicated, too. It takes a lot of energy.
Direct current: Is there a book you’re reading right now?
DM: Yes, it’s a Buddhist book about life and death. It’s called The Tibetan Book of Life and Death.
Direct current: Last question: If you were celebrating something special with a meal, what would you eat?
DM: Definitely Colombian food. Definitely. Empanadas, pan de queso, pandebono. [Colombian cheese breads] As an appetizer. Then, with ajiaco [a traditional soup with chicken and several kinds of potato] Or Sopa de Platano [Colombian plaintain soup]Or bandeja paisa, or barbecue. Colombian barbecue on a barbecue grill.
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