'One for the romantics' - Frank Vandenbroucke's victorious Paris-Nice

Andy McGrath shares an extract from his book 'God is Dead: The Rise and Fall of Frank Vandenbroucke, Cycling’s Great Wasted Talent'

To coincide with Paris-Nice, which Frank Vandenbroucke won in 1998, here is an extract from Andy McGrath’s amazing biography “God is Dead.” The book was shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year prize and is available now on Amazon.

Andy says: ‘Belgian racer Frank Vandenbroucke’s star burned brightly and briefly, but for several years in the late nineties, it looked like he was going to become the dominator of pro cycling. Racing through an era of unbelievable performances and doping excess, his 1998 Paris-Nice triumph encapsulates his fragile brilliance.

This was the most prestigious win of his fledgling career and he added Ghent-Wevelgem weeks later. Back then, the charismatic 23-year-old had the world at his feet and the frontrunning Mapei team at his disposal. He added Liège-Bastogne-Liège with an imperious performance in 1999 but after that, life didn’t work out for “VDB" how many people imagined it would.’