A man who needs little introduction, I had the great pleasure to meet and interview Brian Holm in his native Copenhagen. The interview then appeared within the pages of the book ‘Pro Cycling Style – Woven into History’, a 200 page title dedicated to the rich legacy of style within the sport of cycling.
Holm is one of a group of Danish cyclists who raced in Europe in the 1990s. His role as a reliable domestique would see his fellow Dane and Telekom teammate Bjarne Riis ride to victory in the 1996 Tour de France. Holm then transitioned into a coaching role, mentoring prominent cyclist Mark Cavendish and take command as director sportive at the Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl team.
The following post shows an excerpt, as well as unpublished images, from his ten page interview within the new book, where Holm, a man known for his sense of style both on and off the saddle, shares a typically candid and entertaining insight into a career that has encompassed all of the highs, lows, thrills and spills that professional cycling can offer.
…Brian, in 1986 you signed your first contract with the Roland – Van de Ven team, after the disappointment of 1984 Olympics.
Of course I was disappointed that we missed out on an Olympic medal by a few one hundredths of a second, to a totally unknown American team. By one centimetre we were out, costing us the Olympic medal. Six months afterwards they admitted everybody was blood doped, I mean I am still pissed about it to be honest.
But that’s history. The year after I was competing at the World Championships, and finished fourth in a very close race that was won by Lech Piasecki. So I could’ve been both Olympic Champion and Amateur Road World Champion at 23, it would have been nice for the history books, but unfortunately it wasn’t to be.
Holm pictured right, coming in a close fourth place behind the shoulder of the winner of the 1985 Amateur Road World Champion title, Lech Piasecki. Below this, Holm’s personal training jerseys from both the 1986 Worlds, and the 1984 Olympics
Returning back home to Copenhagen after the World Championships I found myself working as a bricklayer, in a cold Danish winter, but I soon had a phone call from Belgian cycling agent. I flew down there in December and he pulled out a contract in Flemish, thinking they would be paying me 300,000 French Francs per year, it was only after signing I realised the fee was actually in Belgian Francs.
So I’d signed with the Van de Ven team for three years for the equivalent of €10,000 per year, this despite being told by my trainer in Copenhagen that above all, I should bring the contract home to be checked by lawyers before signing.
Brian’s first signing as a pro in 1986 for Roland-Van De Ven team, with an original late season jersey from the 3BP collection
But when you are young and impatient, and have a contract and pen placed in front of you…
So the contract was signed, much to the horror of my trainer, and even though it was far from ideal I convinced Bjarne Riis and Jesper Skibby to sign for the team too, making three of us guys from Copenhagen there in Belgium on the same team. But I was motivated again, after the disappointment of the Olympics and Worlds, I’d now turned pro and was getting good race results.
But a few months later in May I had a big crash in Belgium, breaking my skull and ending up in a coma for three days. The hospital sent for my family as the doctors didn’t believe I would pull through it, a Catholic priest even gave me the last rites, it was serious.
After coming out of the coma, the recovery was painful and the medical bill was huge. I didn’t have insurance and had to find a way to settle it. The team agreed to pay the medical bill, which was a huge relief, but this was at the expense of signing with them for a further three years, paying them back out of my salary…
Holm racing in 1990 with Histor-Sigma, next to one of his original race worn jerseys
…In 1993 you signed for Telekom, becoming Team Deutsche Telekom in 1996, when you were joined by three other Danish riders. Was there a division in the team between the German and Danish riders?
Ah yes, and it was big. Big, big, big. I mean by then our salaries were much larger, and the racing bonuses had become huge, so the rivalries and tensions were there way before we had even arrived at the Tour de France of 1996.
I remember before the Grand Départ, there at the first team meeting Bjarne Riis announced that he had something to say. This immediately made an impression, as Bjarne was never the biggest talker. He stood up and said “Guys, I’d like you to ride for me – because I can win the Tour.”
‘‘For the first ten days I was secretly hoping that Bjarne would break his collarbone so I could go for a stage win (laughter).’’
Everybody in the team was taken aback. He said he’d like to have myself and Christian Henn next to him for the whole race, and I thought ‘My God, I want to win a stage, not sit with Bjarne in the crosswinds!’
For the first ten days I was secretly hoping that Bjarne would break his collarbone so I could go for a stage win (laughter).
There was a very, very bad atmosphere in the team throughout the Tour de France. The other riders were outraged that Bjarne had made his declaration before we had even started.
But he really was convinced that he could do it, although I would personally never have believed it myself. But yes, that’s history, he went and did it didn’t he…
A purveyor of cycling style, Holm pictured at the start of the Three Days of De Panne in 1993 while riding for the Telekom
…You introduced your own nickname for the Quick-Step team: the ‘Wolfpack’, which started as an inside joke, but was quickly embraced by the team and riders.
It all started out as a signature included in my emails, the Wolfpack crest with the motto ‘God forgives, the Wolfpack doesn’t’, which was borrowed from an American biker gang.
My visit to interview Brian coincided with the Copenhagen Fashion Week, so we checked out a few of the shows – naturally
It was an inside joke for many years, but during one Giro d’Italia we had caps made up for the team featuring this ‘Wolfpack’ crest and motto, and I remember being confronted by the teams Press Officer asking me if I was the one responsible for them, thinking he wasn’t going to be happy about it at all – but in actual fact he loved the idea, and wanted to build on it.
So we decided to feature it more publicly within the Deceuninck – Quick-Step team, adding Wolfpack decals to the riders bikes, and they loved it.
The name of the Wolfpack actually comes from a Copenhagan street gang who were active in my neighbourhood of Amager during my youth, so it definitely has some strong roots for me. Everybody in Copenhagan knows Amager – when someone is from there, you better pay attention…
Off to a winning start – Holm celebrating an early career victory as an amateur riding for the Amager Cykle Ring club
I hope you’ve enjoyed this post – to discover the full interview with Brian, it’s waiting for you within the pages of our new book ‘Pro Cycling Style – Woven into History’
This large format coffee table book is packed with over 500 images, showcasing a wealth of original race-worn jerseys, all worn by a host of legendary cyclists. It also features specially commissioned features, as well as a host of interviews with the riders who created this legacy, the world’s leading memorabilia collectors, and the creative teams from Rapha, De Marchi and Santini, who are now creating the breakthrough designs defining the modern era.
This new book is a follow up to our first title ‘The Cycling Jersey – Craftsmanship, Speed and Style‘ which gained the high praise from Rouleur magazine as a title they described as both ‘Beautiful and Enlightening‘.
