"I beat Cav in the sprint” – Adam Blythe talks life in the peloton and his transition into broadcasting with Eurosport
Cycling
Former British national champion Adam Blythe, now 35,
enjoyed a successful professional cycling career before transitioning into
broadcasting. Having ridden for teams such as Lotto and BMC Racing Team, he has
become a respected voice in the sport since retiring in 2019, now serving as a
key analyst for Eurosport.
In a recent interview with Cycling Weekly, Blythe looked
back on his time in the peloton, his early days on the bike, and his
perspective on the modern cycling landscape.
Blythe's journey on two wheels began at a young age,
starting with a Raleigh BMX. “I had a little Raleigh BMX, it was wicked. It was
white with white plastic wheels. My next bike after that was a Pashley BMX with
black plastic wheels.
"I think I was around four when I got my first road
bike. It was a little red one, basically a gravel bike with mountain bike tyres
on it, 20 or 24-inch. When I was five, I got a little blue Edison, which is a
small manufacturer near me, just a little guy that welds bikes together.”
Unlike many young riders, he didn't grow up obsessively
watching cycling on TV. “People used to grow up watching ITV and Channel 4 with
the Tour de France, but I never really used to watch it that much. I'd be aware
of it with the Classics and the riders and stuff, but I was generally just
playing out on my bike. I used to love it, and I don't really have that memory
of pro cycling.
“When I really look at it, it was the Bartoli days, in that
Fassa Bortolo kit. The Frank Vandenbroucke days. But I don't really remember a
specific moment.”
Blythe began racing at an incredibly young age, though the
details are hazy. “I can't remember my first race. I was probably five years
old. I remember going on the velodrome when I was five in Manchester, so I was
dead young doing that. I was up at the top of the track. I've got a little
picture of it, because I couldn't fit on the bike because it had 27-inch
wheels. They had to take the seat off and zip tie it to the top tube so I could
fit on there.”
Career highlights
When asked about his proudest moment, Blythe pointed to his 2016
British National Championship title. “That's a tough one. Probably Nationals. I
knew I was good going into it, but I didn't know how good. I remember getting
in the breakaway. There were five of us – Tao (Geoghegan Hart) was in there.
"We
were in the breakaway for a good 150km and then we got caught by a group of
like 10 with Mark Cavendish near the finish. I was out front for a while, and
then I beat Cav in the sprint. Weeks after that he had pretty much his most
successful Tour de France ever.”
During his time in the professional ranks, Blythe rode
alongside some of cycling’s biggest names. His best teammate? “Probably
Philippe Gilbert. I mean, that guy... In 2011, my second year as a pro, he just
turned up to anything.
"We did a kermesse once, and he said he'd lead me out,
and one guy got in between in a corner. Phil got a gap out of it, and there was
a bunch sprint happening behind, and he just rode away from us and won.
Tactically, everything, he was just incredible.
“I learnt how to be efficient from him. Use your energy when
you need to use it. The way he moved around the peloton, how efficient he was,
but also to enjoy it. You go out training with Phil, and you would spend 80% of
the time laughing your head off, and the next 20% trying to hang onto his back
wheel when he's doing an effort. He loves the sport with an immense passion.”
Life at Eurosport
Since stepping away from professional racing, Blythe has
embraced his role as an analyst, bringing detailed insights to fans. “I get to
talk about something with such passion, and that I know a lot about. I love
talking about it and I love dissecting things that aren't obvious. I love
really going into detail about what effect that will have on a rider or a team,
and really trying to explain that so people can understand.
“But it's just generally that I love watching bike racing,
especially when you get the likes of Flanders or Roubaix, when you're seeing
these big champions go against each other, and each little movement they make
might be for a reason. I like analysing that and trying to predict it.”
Blythe has a pragmatic view of the sport, recognising it as
both a passion and a business. “Cycling's a business. You're employed to do a
job, and if you don't do the job, you'll get sacked.
“I learned it from Tim Harris (Movistar DS), who I lived
with in Belgium when I was a first-year amateur. He just said, ‘You have to
remember that you're in a business. You're in a sport, but you're doing
business within a sport. The better you do business by winning bike races, the
more business you're going to get, the more interest you're going to get, the
more money you're going to make.’
“I hate all the bullshit about the 'wolfpack', family, 'band
of brothers' stuff. Next year, that band of brothers is in another team. So
what happened to the band of brothers? 'We're a family. We're always going to
be a family.' No, you're a group of business people, who really get on and are
good friends. But family doesn't get rid of family.”
Read also
Of course, no interview with Blythe would be complete
without asking about his unique golden bike. “Yes. With the head tube, I wanted
to hide the cables, so I asked a friend of mine to put a fairing on the front.
In my head, the fairing looked a lot different, and when he put it on, I was
like, 'Oh that does not look good.' But I've got it.
"I got Alistair down at Fatcreations to do a paint job. He was putting bronze leaf on his bath, making it all shiny and beautiful,
and I messaged him saying, ‘Can you do that on a bike?’ He said he should be
able to. I said, ‘Could you do it in gold leaf?’ And that's how it came about.
“The plan is to get rid of the head tube on it, but I think
he's going to have to pull a lot of gold leaf off, and I don't want to do it.
If people want to give me flack, that's absolutely fine.”
Fin MajorCycling Journalist
Fin Major is a UK-based writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2024. He is the site’s main writer for FAQs and evergreen explainers and has written around 2,000 pieces for the platform. Alongside this work, he focuses on in-depth analysis and covers the biggest races on the calendar, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, providing clear context around performance trends, tactics, and key storylines.
In his reporting, Fin uses reputable data sources such as ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available. Outside of writing, Fin is an active cyclist, which supports his practical understanding of the sport and its demands.
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