CYCLING -20/11/2009
Q&A with Jamie Staff
How does Melbourne compare with other events on the calendar?
Melbourne is a very important event, and is usually well represented. It is fantastic that it’s on the calendar. From a personal point of view I’ve got great memories of winning the world championships there.
The squad of 12 going to Melbourne is relatively young and inexperienced with the inclusion of some academy riders, what is the thinking behind this?
For track cycling you have to be 100 per cent on form to do well. You don’t normally get people travelling all over the world competing in every event. So riders tend to pick and choose which events to take part in which will enable them to compete at the world championships. In this case it was Manchester, which is why we went all out with the strongest team possible, and as you know it worked. Young riders will go to more events to gain more experience. For riders like myself, Chris (Hoy) and Vickie (Pendleton), 99 per cent of our time is based around training to allow us to perform at 110 per cent when it counts.
Would you like to be competing in Melbourne?
If you had asked me that three or four years ago, I would say yeah I’d like to go. However, nowadays I have other commitments, such as a family, and it seems like a long way to go for two laps. It suits me that I have the luxury of racing once or twice a year and competing at the world championships. But as a youngster you race as much as you can, because that’s how you learn.
Do you see yourself as a mentor for the younger riders?
Definitely. I see myself in the future getting into coaching. It wasn’t something I thought I would do, but after being exposed to it it’s something that I have really enjoyed. It is good giving the knowledge I’ve learnt back to the youngsters - passing on tips can only make the nation stronger. If I can get to London 2012 as an athlete then great, but if I get there as a coach then I’d love that too. I’m taking one year at a time. I was 35 in Beijing and performed at my best ever. To compete in London at 39 is a big ask. It just depends on my health and fitness.
Do you find it hard to cope with the expectation since the success of the Beijing Olympics?
Personally, not at all and I think I speak for the team as well. People do expect you to dominate every race, but we know it doesn’t work like that. We definitely don’t feel the pressure. For example, at the Olympics we were so finely tuned we inspired each other, so we didn’t take notice of everything else. For me it was the best race I’ve ever done and the calmest race I’ve ever done - I had near enough zero per cent anxiety. People will expect us to dominate in London - if we win great, if not then it’s back the drawing board. Sport is sport life is life.
You have already made the switch once from BMX to track cycling: have you ever considered riding for Dave Brailsford’s Team Sky to compete in the Tour de France?
I would love to do it. My mind could do it but I think my body would struggle. I think to be a successful road cyclist you need to have started by your mid-teens. It then takes from five to seven years to become a good rider, with the exception of Cavendish. But riding for that amount of time and sprinting at the end is amazing. Granted he’s not as the track sprint riders, but you’re only talking a 0.1 of a second. If he was on the track doing a sprint discipline he wouldn’t go that much slower than we would. But road cycling is a decision you have to make earlier in your life and I was always into my shorter sprints. Bradley Wiggins surprised himself on the Tour de France after making the switch and I think now he has the confidence to go on and win it. I think he installed some belief in other riders, and I have no doubt that we will have a British Tour de France winner soon.
You have commentated for Eurosport before, is it something that you would consider doing more of in the future?
Definitely. I’ve enjoyed any commentary I’ve done and I now have a lot more respect for the pros that do it. Whether I see myself as a lead commentator I’m not sure; I would like to think I could do that. I enjoy the environment, but you get more nervous watching than riding most of the time.
Jamie Staff will be commentating for British Eurosport on the second event of the UCI Track Cycling World Cup Classics from Melbourne.
World Cup from Melbourne LIVE at 08:45 on Saturday on British Eurosport 2 (Sky 411 / Virgin Media 525); also available on your PC via the Eurosport Player - click on the link under the picture to subscribe.