"We are not all like Pogacar or Remco" - Two promising Soudal - Quick-Step talents quit cycling due to pressures

In the modern day, cycling is more professional than it ever has been before. Because of this, the top riders are becoming younger and younger in age as they make their breakthrough. Sadly for two promising Soudal - Quick-Step youngsters however, the pressures of a potential professional cycling career have proven too much.

Gabriel Berg and Cormac Nisbet both looked set for promising careers in the professional peloton but rather that moving from Soudal - Quick-Step's Development Team to its pro side, the duo have sadly decided to end their respective cycling dreams. "I came to terms with the fact that the lifestyle I once dreamed of as a kid was no longer a future I wish to pursue - it didn’t bring me happiness," Nisbet said via a post on his official Instagram account. "As a result, I have decided to step away from racing at this level and subsequently have mutually agreed to step down from the Soudal - Quick-Step Devo team with immediate effect."

"For as long as I can remember I have had one major goal in life, to become a professional cyclist. No matter what has happened outside of that goal, cycling has given me the discipline, focus and separation to pursue that. It has rewarded me in ways I didn’t know possible and challenged me to blood, scars and tears," he continued. "Cycling is a rollercoaster and the highs are less frequent than the lows. However, every moment - good and bad - has made me a stronger and greater person. I owe it so much. I also owe an immeasurable amount of gratitude to some incredible mentors I have had. People who have guided me through the tough points, given me opportunities and belief when most didn’t."

In an extensive interview with L'Equipe meanwhile, Berg explained his own reasoning for premature cycling retirement. "I took the decision to stop cycling at the highest level and return to the cycling I loved, with fewer headaches, fewer constraints, and perhaps even more pleasure," Berg explained. "I love cycling, and turning professional was a dream of mine, but this year made me realise that it wasn’t necessarily for me due to lots of sacrifices, time away from my loved ones, repeated crashes, constant tension, little time to do anything else."

Despite never having reached the top level, Berg is already feeling the effects of the rigours and dangers of the sport. "My body is damaged and I have scars for life. Last July, during a race in Belgium, I had four falls in ten kilometres. I was a little scared," he reveals. "My age played a role in my decision to stop. At 18, I wasn't ready, it was too early. I didn't have the maturity to put everything aside for cycling. I didn't know how to turn my passion into a career. I felt trapped in a routine, cycling, cycling, cycling, all the time. Apart from cycling, I didn't see anyone. I no longer had a social life. When my friends suggested going on vacation or going for a hike, I refused. These little things accumulate."

"The development teams do not want to miss the next nugget, the future Pogacar, the future Evenepoel. So as soon as a junior gets results, they sign him, except that we are not all like Pogacar or Remco," Berg notes. "I don't regret my choices. It was a great experience. In two or three years, I might even try again. I'm still riding. I'm going to get an amateur licence again. And when I go training I still put on my Quick-Step jersey. I just want to tell young riders to make the most of their junior years, they're the best. And don't give up on your studies. You need something in case things go wrong, it's just a cycling career."