Fränk the summiteer

This is the translation of the article from the Revue. It's a bit older but I already said something about it and anonymous asked me to translate it.
It took a long time and I'm sure there are a lot of mistakes in it ;) So, please be soft on me...

His dad, former girlfriend, dog, mum and little brother ;)

The people who win a a classical race are part of the cycling history, forever. But the career of Fränk Schleck also shows how brutal this sport can be and how difficult the way to the top is.

There is a big crush in front of the bus of the Danish CSC-team.Three television crews with their cameras are waiting for the cyclists. The boss Bjarne Riis is giving interviews indefatigable. In about 30 minutes the race Fléche Wallone will start – the second classical race of this year. Today it’s Wednesday, 19^th of april. Three days since Fränk Schleck won the Amstel Gold Race and wrote Luxembourgian sportshistory.

Today the will ride from Charleroi to Huy. The man from Mondorf is one of the last, who gets out of the bus. In the next second a lot of journalists and fans are around the cyclist. The 26 year old appears relaxed and tells that now he is happy because he doesn’t have to hunt for an important victory anymore. “In the future I will take everything as it comes. I won’t worry.”

The pressure of success is away. A fan shows him a picture. It shows Fränk in his red-blue-white jersey, how he celebrated his victory at the Cauberg. He never had to give so much interviews and write so much autographs like in the last few days.

A short time ago he was just one of the pack. Although he made headlines at 2006 Paris-Nice, came in second at Züri-Metzgete, in third at the Giro di Lombardia and fourth at the Tour de Suisse. In the world of cycling there is only one star – the winner, the second is the first loser. Who - excluded a few hardcore fans – knows the second or third of the Tour de France when Armstrong won this tour. “I enjoy the situation. A great feeling, especially because I didn’t know it before.”

Though the spokesman of CSC tried to coordinate everything, the hours after his victory were very demanding. He hadn’t time to enjoy everything what happend in his life yet, also it changed it completely. Yesterday he gave interviews to seven TV or radio stations. Today he came in fourth place and realized how fast everything changes. “That’s just crazy, how fast everything goes away. In one moment they lavish every kind of care and attention on you and in the next you become nearly anonymous.” For him this is an interesting experience.

Schlecks career started at the ACC Contern. But what means started? Actual Fränk just continued what his older brother Steve began – cycling. And Steve just continued what his father began.

Johny Schleck rode the Tour de France eight times and reached the finish on the Champs d’Élysée seven times. The talent for Johny got right into his cradle, because his father and his uncle were also cyclists. The family Schleck is definetlely what we call a dynasty of cyclists. Moreover there is Andy, Fränks younger brother and also a rider of the team CSC.

At the age of eleven Fränk won his first race near Saarbrücken (a German town near the border to Luxembourg). Followed by riding for the teams SAF Cessingen and LC Tétingen. Later he became espoir at the Italian team De Nardi. There was no reason why he shouldn’t become a professional cyclist because this team is known as a good springboard into the world of cycling.

“If I hadn’t have a contract until my 23^rd birthday, I would have stopped cycling and started to study. Also it wouldn’t have been easy for me.” Probably forestry because Fränk is a person in tune with the nature. Fishing, hunting, climbing – these are his hobbies. In his private life he is a home-loving guy.

“The family is the most important thing for him. They provide him with security, especially when there are bad times in his career.”, tells his girlfriend Martine. Since 1999, with a short break, she and Fränk are a couple. Shortly before christmas they moved together in an own house with a big garden.

In the career of Fränk Schleck there are a lot of ups and downs. After riding for De Nardi he got a contract from Festina but short time after there weren’t a team Festina anymore and Fränk had no contract. That was in 2002. “That was one of the hardest times of my life because most of the teams already finished their planning for the new season and didn’t want new riders. I often doubt whether I’m a good cyclist but I never gave up.”

Then he found shelter in Châteauroux. But in France they fail to recognize his talent and said that there are a million of cyclists like him. Then Bjarne Riis saw him and gave him unique chance. Today Fränk is the new star of cycling in Luxembourg. It’s not hard to imagine how satisfied he must have felt when the french manager pat him on the shoulder after his victory and wave with the money. But for Schleck there is no chance to change the team. “I ride for the best time in the world and want to achieve much more with this team.”

Later Riis honoured him “Fränk has the potential to come under the top 10 at the Tour de France.” This increased the expectations of the “Munnerefer Stuff” even higher. (Munneref is the Luxemburgian name of Mondorf and Munnerefer Stuff is a pub there.) Here are the meetings of the Fanclub of Fränk Schleck, which already has about 700 members.

Some of them regard him as a future winner of the Tour de France. They go into a state of euphoria which doesn’t know any limits.

Last weekend Fränk rode the last of the three classical races of the spring and came in seventh. His next race will be the Tour de Luxembourg at home. There he wants to achieve something great. Then he will go to Switzerland and later to France for the Tour.

But one thing is already certain: After the Grande Boucle took place in Luxembourg, Mondorf will be like a ghost town. The fanclub of Fränk organize a journey to the Alpes to support Fränk, when he helps his teammate Ivan Basso to follow in Armstrong’s footsteps. “My task will be helping Ivan. If I would win a stage, it would be great – if not, it would also be great.”

This is Fränk. He is so selfless that he first thinks of the others. A typical altruist. “It’s the way my parents bring me up.”, Fränk simply says. Educated to respect hierarchy. Even if he is on the way to confuse the hierarchy of the team CSC.

Until now this philosophy helps him to get by easily. So there are no reasons why he should change it.