Peter Sagan: One in a million

Twitter and the Interwebs have been furiously active since the start of the Tour de France when it comes to the topic of Peter Sagan.  There are those who think he’s a showboat, others think he’s humble, and still others are questioning his overall cleanliness.

The bottom line is that Peter Sagan is a phenomenal talent. Sagan comes from a stable and loving family and his parents own a grocery store in his hometown. Sagan has been riding since he was around nine years old, and gained a reputation for racing his bike through his junior years in regular shorts and running shoes. He also would drink just regular water, which got looks from his fellow teenage competitors. Story goes that he even accidentally sold his bike before a race and had to ride his sister’s bike, which he piloted to victory.

The kid is a monster. A velvet samurai, as the Cyclismas folks have dubbed him, and a “terminator” as his teammates began calling him during his mountain bike days, as he would totally destroy bikes based upon his riding style and his penchant for pulling tricks. It’s rare to see such deft bike-handling skills possessed by one so young, as most “modern” coaches have forgotten the art of racing in favour of lung capacity and scientific performance analysis.

Sagan almost quit pro cycling when he was looking for a home due to the politics of the Quick-Step team (eat your heart out, Lefevere), and it took a little coaxing from Stephano Zanatta of Liquigas for Sagan to give the sport another shot.

Make no mistake – we are witnessing the birth of a once-in-a-generation phenom.

We have seen this in other sports. Pelé in soccer. Matt Biondi in swimming. Wayne Gretzky in hockey. Michael Jordan in basketball. Katarina Witt in figure skating. These are people who changed their respective games in dramatic ways because of their raw talent and their enthusiasm for the sport. Sure, all had a certain swagger, but they all also reflected a certain “groundedness” to their sporting pursuits.

Sagan isn’t pre-packaged. He isn’t a slick marketing campaign. He’s a lad who loves to ride his bike. A lad who likes to have fun. He isn’t even a lad who professes a desire to “win at all costs.” When presented an opportunity to say who was going to have a shot at stage victory yesterday in Stage 3, he said it would be a team decision.  Sagan is reminding all of us what the pure joy of “the ride” is all about. It’s about having fun. When asked about whether or not his victory salutes weren’t a bit arrogant, he actually giggled, saying no, he just wanted the fans to enjoy the fun.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we have won the cycling lottery. History is filled with talented folks who chose not to pursue the sport in which they were talented, and history is also filled with those so driven to win in a particular sport that we really didn’t care to hear from them ever again. For us to witness genetic ability meeting sporting opportunity should give us all a smile on our faces.

The downside?

Sure, the kid has colourful celebrations. Sure, he doesn’t follow established protocols in “bowing” to veteran pressure when the flamme rouge is in sight. Sure, he can be a bit of a loose cannon for teammates who wish to lock up their own victories.  Those occurrences are what make the sport a spectacle, and as long as his antics don’t put other riders in jeopardy, what truly is the harm?

Let’s be thankful the lad has a solid upbringing and a solid sense of family. Let’s be thankful he’s in a team that has professed a solid policy on anti-doping. Let’s be thankful the public relations wolves and the corporate cartel cougars haven’t managed to get their claws into to him yet. Let’s be thankful that we haven’t been saturated with Sagan on every milk carton, every magazine, every cycling product ever created. Let’s be thankful he hasn’t been surrounded by yes men offering to give him every opportunity to fulfill whatever whim his heart desires.

Let us pray that those who look after the lad on a professional level keep him grounded, and Sagan stays true to his strong family values. After all, we’ve all had it up to our eyeballs with the alternative – to the point where seeing a single colour can cause certain individuals to spontaneously seizure, or from reading the words “Live” and “Strong” put together.

We could be witnessing the second coming of Eddy Merckx. Let’s just hope and pray it doesn’t turn into the second coming of Lance Armstrong. We all know how that story ends.

Lastly, resist the temptation to elevate this one young man above the sport, or above all in the sport. Enjoy him for the joy he brings to the sport. Enjoy him for the spectacle that he brings from 500 metres to the finish line. Enjoy him for the humble, almost sheepish, interviews after he’s conquered another race. Enjoy the petulance of his youth, and enjoy his maturity into a seasoned cycling cyclone.

We are witnessing the birth of the Tourminator. The Velvet Samurai. The summer of Sagan.

You can tell your grandchildren you watched it unfold during your lifetime.