EXCLUSIVE: The 'awkward' challenge facing foes turned teammates at Paris Olympics
At the Olympics, rivals will become teammates and teammates will become rivals in an awkward set of circumstances unique to road cycling.
At this year's Tour de France, cyclists competed for their respective professional race teams. Just a few weeks later they'll trade sponsored jerseys for their country colours.
"The difference with the Olympics is all of a sudden the guys you're competing with three weeks before are now your teammates," Stan Sport cycling expert Stuart O'Grady told Wide World of Sports.
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"So it's not always a perfect environment. You're asking guys with similar goals, similar egos… you have to come down to a decision of who's the team captain.
Tour Down Under race director Stuart O'Grady. Tim de Waele via Getty Images
"So there have been some pretty awkward conversations in the past, but they have to be honest and hard conversations. You've gotta go into with a race plan.
"It'd be great to have a little camera in that room. It would have been good to look back on a few of our meetings in the past – you know, a bit of heat.
"At the end of the day, you get a result and then once you make that result in-house, then you have to stick to it.
"The hardest part is actually getting the formation and getting the strategy right before the race has even started.
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"And can you imagine you've got Ben O'Connor and Jai Hindley and Michael Matthews all sitting there thinking 'I want to win gold' and you're on the same team.
"There's a lot of stuff goes on behind the scenes in the build-up. It would probably make a pretty interesting story.
"If you're not on a great day, it's pretty easy to come to the conclusion that you can help teammates, but if you're on a good day and you think that you can win, and you're not the preferred candidate, it can make things a little bit awkward."
Jai Hindley (left) of Australia with Aleksander Vlasov of Russia and Primoz Roglic of Slovenia and Team Red Bull BORA prior to the 111th Tour de France. Tim de Waele via Getty Images
That scenario is made tougher by the fact that more often than not the riders are left to decide among themselves who is the preferred candidate.
Riders have to make a case themselves and will lean on their previous results.
"At the end of the day it's the riders. The riders have to go into a room. It's not really a coach's decision," said O'Grady.
"Cycling's really unique in this kind of environment. They're all professional riders riding for trade teams who for one time every four years get asked to work together.
"It's really not normal. World championships is a bit different but you have eight or nine riders per team so you can always have two teams, you've got two favourites. With the Olympics, you have to get everyone on the same page if you're gonna try and win.
"It's hard enough trying to win with teammates let alone when your teammates may not be on the same frequency. It's a fair bit to unpack.
"It would be nice to say there was a mediator in it and someone came in and went 'You're doing this, you're doing that' but that's unrealistic."
Stuart O'Grady will appear as a cycling expert on Stan Sport's Olympics Daily and Paris Preview shows throughout the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
