Stephen Clancy - in white and blue - has ridden some huge races against the best teams in the world this year; a far cry from living at home and going to college in Limerick just 12 months ago.
Ireland’s Stephen Clancy has brought the curtain down on a quite remarkable 2013 season, during which he got to grips with the diabetes diagnosis that threatened to end his career last season. But far from ending his time in the peloton, he has turned his condition in his favour and has now just come to the end of the first season of a two-year contract with Novo Nordisk. The US-based ProContinental squad is made up entirely of riders with type 1 diabetes and, as he tells us on this dispatch, has proven a hugely positive influence in his life.
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Well, it’s been a roller coaster journey this season. I’ve done an enormous amount of travelling between Korea, Canada, Czech Republic, Italy, Denmark, Brazil, UK, and Spain. And now I've just finished racing in China; the Tour of Hainan to be precise.
It’s gone well for the most part; the usual highs and lows associated with bike racing. But I’m very pleased with how my first season racing full-time has been. I’m really looking forward to building and improving in 2014.
I’m loving the team. It’s a huge change and one I’m happy with. It’s completely different to anything I was ever used to. I hadn’t ever even moved out of home for college and only competed domestically before now. So it’s hard to believe the change that has happened in such a short space of time.
There was naturally going to be an important adaptation process involved with stepping up to this level, racing for a Pro Continental squad. But so far so good and I’m pleased with my progress.
I’ve raced many big races internationally this year, against some pretty stiff competition. But the experience I’ve gained and improvements I’ve made have been very satisfying.
I’ve been racing all year, really, except when I crashed out in the Tour of Korea on stage 2. I came home then for the Nationals. It went well and I was pleased. But I seemed to do a little too much early on when the main escape of the day got away. And I faded on the last lap or two, dropping out of it and off the U23 podium to fifth.
I followed that up with one of my best periods of the year, racing-wise. I went to Vancouver for BC Superweek. It consisted of nine races in 10 days, including lots of crits, a UCI road race and a hill climb.
It was a great success for me. I consistently had good results, breaking into the prizes on four occasions; the best of which was a 7th place on the final crit of the series, the Tour de White Rock.
From there I travelled to the Czech Republic to race the U23 European Road Race Championships on the Irish team. It was a great honour but unfortunately it didn’t go to plan for me. I was on a very bad day, and felt it in the days leading up to the race. The busy race schedule before it had taken a lot out of me.
After the Euros I went on to the beautiful area of Montebelluna in Italy to join up with the rest of my teammates for a mid-season training camp. I had a short two days at home in Limerick before the Tour of Denmark; my second UCI 2.HC race of the year.
I had a great sense of achievement just to even finish this race. And for the team to net some good results along the way made it a huge success.
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I had to pull out of the Tour of Rio in Brazil because my body was absolutely empty. The physical demands of the season had clearly caught up with me, and I benefitted hugely from some rest before building back up again for the final race of the season, the nine-day UCI 2.HC stage race in China, the Tour of Hainan.
I have just completed that; in 95th place, 21 minutes down on Belkin’s Moreno Hofland.
As for my diabetes, I really have learned so much about it since my diagnosis. I’ve noticed that competing at this level does not complicate my condition as I was told it might. I find the exercise actually improves how I can control things.
Many people take the view that once you have diabetes there’s very little you can do or eat; that it’s restrictive, always about what you can’t do.
For me that isn’t the case at all. It means a lot to me to be part of a team that’s showing the world what you can do. Absolutely anything is possible. And it’s important that people begin to realise that because there are 371 million people with diabetes in the world and that number is rising.
I think the most important thing to note is how we exceeded people’s expectations in terms of what they thought a team of athletes who all have diabetes could achieve.
Not only have we competed in many of the world’s biggest races this year, we’ve been competitive in them. Have a look at some of the results, a podium in the Tour de Beauce, 6th and 8th places in the USA Pro Challenge, five top 10 places in the Tour of China including two 3rd places.
And this is just the beginning. It was our first year together and the start of a long-term project. So certainly this is a good foundation for things to come.
In terms a personal highlight, the Tour of Denmark would rank up there. I finished with Cavendish and Breschel on stages two and six. These are the first steps for me in adapting to racing at the top end of the sport. And I hope to continue these improvements.
It was also great to see my Italian teammate break into the top 10 on one of the stages, sprinting across the line with two flat tyres.
So now, it’s time to put the feet up a little, but not for too long. We’re counting down to World Diabetes day on November 14th. We’re hoping to create awareness about the condition and also about the team, which proves what athletes with diabetes can achieve.
I’m an ambassador for Diabetes Ireland so it would be great if you were able to show your support for the organisation in the lead up to Word Diabetes Day and the team next year.
That’s it for now. All the best.
Stephen
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