Hong Kong coach tells cyclists to embrace extreme pain or forget major title ambitions
Herve Dagorne says riders must go ‘right to the limit’ for victory, and that Ceci Lee missed a great opportunity for second gold in omnium
Hong Kong’s cyclists must increase their pain thresholds to have any chance of competing for major titles, said head coach Herve Dagorne.
The city team won six senior and four junior medals from this month’s Asian Track Championships, but Dagorne said his riders would have won more than their one gold had they been prepared to “go right to the limit”.
The gold came for Ceci Lee Sze-wing, in Sunday’s scratch race, but Dagorne said the 23-year-old had only herself to blame for not adding a second on Wednesday, after she blew a significant lead to finish second to Mizuki Ikeda in the omnium.
“They all say they did their best, but I don’t see any of them vomiting from the effort, or needing to be carried off the track,” Dagorne said. “I’m not saying they don’t go deep into [feeling] pain, but they don’t go far enough.
“Our brain has limit alerts telling us to stop when we feel pain. You need to trick your brain, so you create the ability to go deeper. If you feel happy with a silver medal, you won’t hurt your body to try for gold. It’s down to how much you want it, and never surrendering until the last.”
Dagorne, who competed in two Olympics for his native France, said his riders were showing considerable power during intense exercise.