I’m Rick Zabel, not the son of.

I remember when my contract with BMC was coming to an end after the third year, I was really afraid of not getting a new one. It was the first time I was in a contract year in my career. I saw many guys careers just ending all of a sudden. I was afraid of life after cycling so was stressed about a new contract.

My mentality has completely changed from that time. Now, my outlook on my career is completely different. I’ve learnt to just enjoy every moment when you can race. This gives me positive energy.

As long as I want to be a cyclist I hope I get a contract but I want to truly enjoy the moments and be present, without the fear.

It was always my dream to be a pro cyclist. I’m in my sixth professional year and that’s an achievement I’m happy with. I’m proud of things like starting the Tour de France twice, doing the Giro twice, Paris Roubiax four times, Flanders, San Remo. I’m proud of that.

I came into the sport with the expectations of being Erik Zabel’s son. I put a lot of pressure on myself and automatically expected to go on to be the same as my father and be super successful – be a winner.

Before turning pro I won u23 Flanders ahead of Groenewagen and Magnus Cort. In the under 23’s I was competing against guys like Ewan and Alaphilippe. These are guys who’ve gone on to be world class. I’ve had a good career so far but those guys are much more successful than me so far.

My first few years as a professional my happiness was dependent on my performance. If I had a bad weekend of racing, I’d be unhappy the whole week. If I had a good weekend, I’d be happy. I’m really proud that I’ve overcome this and have a different outlook on my career. Cycling is not everything anymore. I live for it but there is more to life. I’ll be in the sport for 10 – 15 years then a new life will start and I always want to have balance.

There is still a lion inside of me that wants to win big races but I feel like I have just arrived in a good place in life and am happy. I’m happy with the person I am. I don’t compare myself with my father anymore. I’m happy to be Rick. People recognise me as Rick Zabel now and not the son of. My dad was much more successful than me, but I have a different character. I’ll leave the sport with more friends than he has. He was a winner and sometimes you have to be an asshole to be that guy. I don’t mean it in a negative way, it’s a good thing to win races, but if you’re a winner, you just have to think about yourself a lot.

I feel like I have quite good balance between being a sports person who wants to achieve big things and being happy and content in life.

When I turned pro with BMC, the guys I liked the most were Michael Schär and Klaas Lodewyck, not the big names on the team. Of course, I had a good relationship with the champions like Cadel Evans and Greg van Avermaet but I realised you can be proud of yourself just making it to the professionals. The Press Officer, the mechanic, the soigneur, they can all be proud of themselves. Your job doesn’t define who you are.

When I realised I will not be as successful as my dad, I learnt it doesn’t matter. You don’t need to live up to other’s opinions of you but what’s important is what you think of yourself.

You have to have high expectations of yourself but you also have to be happy with who you are. I’m proud of what I’ve achieved so far and I’m looking forward to what the future holds.