This is how I got here

I’m a big Joseph Gordon-Levitt fan so after the movie Premium Rush, I got myself a fixed gear bike like he had in the movie. Then when I decided I enjoyed cycling, I got a cheap old carbon frame from the ’90s with some old Shimano STI levers. It cost €200 or €300.

I never used to be a cyclist. I was a rower in 2014 and watched the Vuelta a Espana that year with my rowing teammates. They were always talking about cycling so I thought, let me check this out.

Cycling is not a huge sport in Hungary so my parents weren’t supporting me but weren’t against it. I would work in the summer to save up some money to buy my own equipment.

Once I started getting more successful in the second or third year, my parents were happy about it and took notice.

I started racing more as a second-year junior and got good results compared to a normal Hungarian level. I was national champion in the road race and time trial and also getting international results.

I started thinking maybe I could become something, someday.

The next year I won a UCI race in Serbia and was second overall in the Tour of Hungary.

I actually crashed on stage 3 of the Tour of Hungary and got checked out by the doctor. He told me everything was fine, and I could continue. After the tour I didn’t recover from what I thought was muscle pain but when I went for an x-ray, they revealed the collarbone was broken.

So, I’d finished second overall as an elite with a fractured collarbone.

I always had more developed upper body muscles than most cyclists because of my background as a rower. They said my muscle structure held the collorbone together. The muscles acted like a brace. The excess amount helped me hold it together. It was not a serious dislocation, just a small crack.

I’m proud of that result because it’s my home country and for one week I was the star at home. That was the first time for me when I got a lot of media attention. It was a good feeling.

Once I was there, I immediately told myself, this is the day, I’m going to win today. They will write articles about it, I will post a victory salute photo, I will call my mom and tell her I won.

The results were a pretty good indication that I might get somewhere as after that I got a stagiaire position with Quick Step and the pro ranks became within an arm’s reach for me.

I already spent time at training camps with Quick Step in 2017 and 2018 so I had the number of the person calling me. I was out training and at the end of an interval. I picked up. They asked me if I wanted to stagiaire with them. I thought, no ways! I can’t believe this is happening. It was a huge moment.

I have a friend in the Hungarian federation who helped me a lot, he was the first person I told.

It was good to get a taste of the World Tour before returning to Continental level for one more year.

Now obviously I am turning pro with Mitchelton-Scott which I am so happy about.

The offer to turn pro came at a really good time because I’d been sick at home with a virus after the highs of my victory in Tour de Normandie.

I’d crashed pretty bad in the first stage of Normandie. The peloton split in the crosswinds and the guy in front of me crossed my wheel. I knew I was on really good form there because at the race before in Drenthe, I had a mechanical problem in the final and could still finish in the top 20 of a 1.HC race which was 217km.

I was feeling really strong all day so going into Normandie I was expecting a good result. I was a bit disappointed crashing on the first day. I had some lows like going into the gruppetto because of bad legs after the crash.

Then on stage 5 I got into the breakaway.

Once I was there, I immediately told myself, this is the day, I’m going to win today. They will write articles about it, I will post a victory salute photo, I will call my mom and tell her I won.

That’s all the stuff I was telling myself in the breakaway.

In the end it was very very close but I was not doubting myself that I would win.

Unfortunately after that I was struck by a virus and was having a low moment at home for two weeks. I was a bit bummed.

My agent texted me and asked if he could call me. He told me Mitchelton-Scott made me an offer. I was going to be turning pro. It was a good moment in the middle of a bad two weeks.

Now I’m here, at the start of my pro career. One chapter has ended and the work starts for a brand new crazy chapter in this journey we call life.