Originally published under the title: Merckx, half man, half bike. London : Yellow Jersey Press, 2012.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 296-297) and index.

Eddy Merckx is to cycling what Muhammad Ali is to boxing or Pele to soccer: simply the best there has ever been. Merckx amassed an astonishing 445 victories. Lance Armstrong, by comparison, managed fewer than 100. Merckx didnt just beat his opponents; he crushed them. But his triumphs only tell half a story that includes horrific injury, a doping controversy, and tragedy. He was nicknamed "the Cannibal" for his insatiable appetite for victory, but the moniker did scant justice to a man who was handsome, sensitive, and surprisingly anxious.