Ben Wiggins, who will ride in the men’s junior individual time trial at the World Cycling Championships on Friday, lives in the shadow of not just one famous name, but two.
The son of the 2012 Tour de France winner and multiple world and Olympic medallist, Sir Bradley, is trained by Giles Pidcock, father of Olympic mountain bike champion and Tour de France stage winner, Tom.
The 18-year-old accepts his name may have opened doors within cycling, but knows too that it may also have increased expectations. “It’s more difficult to manage when it’s not going so well,” he says. “Say you’ve had a few bad races, it starts – I don’t know if it’s just in my own head – but you start to think about what people are thinking or saying.”
His father was a famous sporting figure of the summer of 2012, winning a string of races before taking a first British win in the Tour de France, ringing the bell in the Olympic Stadium and then claiming the gold medal in the Olympic time trial. He was also voted BBC sports personality of the year.
“People are always going to compare me to my dad,” Ben says, “but if you look at my junior results, compared to when he was a junior, I’m a lot better than he was.”
Wiggins Jr says he reminds his dad of that, “all the time,” but adds that his father also “says it himself”.
“It was difficult at the start of last season, as in my first year, I hadn’t really done anything,” he says. “But now I’ve won the European title and a Nations Cup on the road. When you’re doing it yourself, you can make your own name.”
Others have endured similar expectations, including Axel Merckx, son of the legendary Eddy, but Ben’s career is developing in the age of social media and in the shadow of a high-achieving father, who is keeping his distance from a sport with which he has long had a bitter-sweet relationship.
Despite that, Ben is already targeting Olympic Games success and intends to follow a well-worn path, combining racing on the track with building a career on the road, “in the short term, for the next few years”.
“I’d like to go to the LA Olympics [in 2028] and I imagine, as with most riders, I’ll focus on the road, but I’ll try to do both for the next few years.”
His father is expected to be watching on, incognito, on Friday. Ben says his father has not been a source of advice. “There’s not much he can really give you,” he said. “It’s 25 years since he rode a junior race and the sport has changed so much. It’s more just the presence, than any advice.”
The Pidcock connection, however, through the Fensham Howes MAS Design team, has been important. “It’s great,” Ben says. “I’ve been there both years as a junior. Giles, Tom’s dad, is great. Having someone who has been through it himself – especially for the other boys who don’t really have as much experience with the ins and outs of the sport – it’s invaluable.”
As for his performance in Friday’s time trial, the discipline in which his father excelled, his response is guarded: “We’ll see. You never know how you’re going to feel.
“I’ve had a tough few months. It’s been a busy season. I’ve just come off the track as well, so I’m trying to recover best I can. You can sort of suffer through a 20-minutes effort, but there’s nothing you can do if you don’t have it.”
Like others, the world championships being moved from its usual date in the autumn, to early August, has forced a rethink of his schedule. “In the past couple of months I’ve been preparing for the track really and playing catch-up the last couple of weeks,” he says.
Regardless of his family name, though, he has his own path to follow. “In the short-term, I’ve got the track worlds at the end of this month,” he says. “I’m more prepared for that really.”
